(Photo by John Harrelson/Getty Images)

Welcome to the first weekly Toby's Sicknissified Race Picks. Each week I will predict all of the drivers that will finish in the top-five, and I will also choose one darkhorse.

Well before we begin, I must define the word "sicknissified" that I have created.

Sicknissified [sik-nis-i-fied]: adj. used to describe something so amazing and/or accurate that it is sick, or mystifying.

OK, with that out of the way, let's look at the race set for today, the Goody's 500 at Martinsville. Martinsville is a .526 mile paperclip that eats brakes and leans heavily on the rev limiter down the straight aways. It takes a really smooth driver who isn't afraid to lay the chrome horn to his opponents to move his way to the front.

Obviously, two drivers that will finish in the top-five today have to be Jeff Gordon (starting on the pole) and Jimmie Johnson (starting ninth). The Hendrick duo have won seven of the last nine Sprint Cup Series races at Martinsville.

Gordon and Johnson have also each finished in the top-10 in eight of the last nine races ran here.

Another driver that will finish in the top-five today will be Denny Hamlin (starting eighth). Not only did Hamlin finish second last week at Bristol, but in his career at Martinsville he has only finished outside the top-10 once in seven career starts...Oh by the way, he also won this race last year, enough said.

Jeff Burton (starting 13th) finished third at Vegas, and eighth at Bristol. Well today, he will add a top-five at Martinsville to his 2009 stats. Jeff Burton is one of the smoothest and cleanest driving guys in the Sprint Cup Series, which will undoubtedly help keep him out of trouble today. Burton has one career victory at Martinsville in 30 starts, and his career average finish at this track is 14.6, not too shabby.

My final pick to finish in the top-five today may be scrutinized until the finish of this race, but Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (starting 19th) will finish in the top-five. Through five races in 2009, Earnhardt only has one top-10 finish and has only led one lap, so why pick him to finish in the top-five?

When Earnhardt came here as a rookie, he hit everything on the track but the pace car (actually I think he did). Since then "Lil E" has taken a liking to this track and it shows. Earnhardt has eight top-fives (including a second place last fall), and nine top-10 finishes at this track in 18 career starts. His career average finish at Martinsville is now a sporty 13.6.

My darkhorse pick for today is Juan Pablo Montoya (starting 15th). Now before you exit this article, give me a chance to explain myself. 

Montoya is quietly putting together a consistent season. As long as he doesn't let his sometimes fiery attitude get in the way today, JPM will have a top-10 to top-15 run at Martinsville Speedway. 

For those of you who doubt Montoya can make it through this race unscathed, let me give you a statistic to chew on; Montoya's career average finish at Martinsville is 12.8.

There you have it! Stay tuned for next weeks edition of Toby's Sicknissified Race Picks.

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