Mark Martin Realistic Chance For A Championship In 2009
By: Gregg A. Shultz, RaceFanVote.com
When it was announced that Mark Martin would be fielding the no. 5 car for
Hendrick Motorsports full time in 2009, the first thing that came to most
people’s minds who have followed him throughout his career was that maybe
he could finally get the championship that has eluded him for so many years.
Whether or not Martin has a realistic shot at the championship can be
argued either way, but what can’t be debated is that it’s not a hyped up
stunt to grab headlines, it’s the real deal.
His History and Career.
Since his career began in the top level of stock car racing in 1981 at the age of 22, he has been runner up to the
championship 4 times. Along with that, he had an impressive streak which began in the second season after his full
time return to cup from 1989 through 2000 where he finished in the top 10 in points for 12 consecutive seasons.
Duly noted that it was after bouncing around from team to team the first five seasons of his career before settling in
with Jack Roush in which he went on his remarkable run. During that streak he recorded 32 of his 35 career cup
wins all while posting equally if not more impressive numbers in the now Nationwide, Truck & IROC with a total of 68
victories in those series.
Martin, who will be 50 years old when he begins driving for Hendrick, has defied the law of averages in how aging
competitors seem to lose their edge later in their careers. Running a part time schedule last season [24 of 36 races]
for the now defunct Ginn Motorsports, Martin climbed from the car as promised after the 4th race of the season
[Atlanta], while 4th in points. When he became part of Dale Earnhardt, Inc. through the merger/buyout, he continued
with his part time effort and managed a 27th position in the points rankings despite his part time status.
Does He Believe He Can Do It?
Looking to 2009, how realistic of a chance does Martin have at winning a championship? When asked about it, his
response has been that he will be racing against the likes of Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson & Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
[teammates] and in the same equipment. It is the sort of response that you would expect from a man with a
tremendous amount of talent, yet is extremely humble at the same time. He took the rule of ‘it’s okay to be cocky as
long as you could back it up on the track’ and skipped the first part.
When asked specifically about the championship factoring into his decision to return full time in the Cup Series, his
response was, “I don’t know, it could happen [winning the championship], but that’s not really it. I am having too much
fun driving these cars to go with what was offered [at DEI] and it wasn’t fair to Almirola who is ready to step up [full
time]. I told Rick [Hendrick] no twice, but I just couldn’t pass on the opportunity to drive for him.”
Why He Has A Shot.
His most recent stats from when he was competing full time at Roush go back to 2006 where he finished 9th in
points and in both 2005 & 2004 he finished 4th. Another impressive stat in regards to Martin’s consistency through
the years is that the first season that he finished 2nd in points was in 1990 and the last time was 2002, 12 years
apart. There are a lot of good drivers who have had a peak in a 12 year span, but in Martin’s case the ‘line chart’
has been on peak most of the time.
The thing that stands out the most about Mark Martin in his driving abilities is that he has the benefit of age and
wisdom with the talent and reflexes of a driver half his age. Crossing over into the Nationwide Series in the 3rd race
of 2008, he earned the first victory for JR Motorsports at Vegas in a car fielded by the newly formed partnership of
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Rick Hendrick. During the race in Vegas, if you didn’t know who was driving the car you
would have guessed it to be one of NASCAR’s young guns, charging up through the field, dive-bombing the turns
and making his car stick where others could not. He showed a fire to win in the closing laps at the expense of
spinning Carl Edwards in an incident that most considered to be just hard racing, because Martin does not have the
reputation for taking people out. It’s another distinction that he has earned over the years, to be a clean racer which
has garnered the respect of his peers in the garage as well as the fans.
Another Chance.
There is no doubt that the chances for Mark Martin to win the Championship in 2009 are a long shot, but in no other
circumstance does he have a better opportunity to do so. His overall performance and consistency is what keeps
him hovering close to the top, but what has eluded him is sufficient wins to put him into the coveted championship
spot. There have been a number of times that just one additional victory for him in the season would have won him
the championship and possibly he can find that missing piece of the puzzle at Hendrick.
If he does manage to pull it off, I doubt there will be even one detractor even if it comes down to him and Dale Jr.
battling it out to the last lap at Homestead. If ever there has been a competitor who deserved a championship, if
there is such a thing, then Mark Martin is the man. Either way it’s going to be exciting to watch.
By: Gregg A. Shultz, RaceFanVote.com
When it was announced that Mark Martin would be fielding the no. 5 car for
Hendrick Motorsports full time in 2009, the first thing that came to most
people’s minds who have followed him throughout his career was that maybe
he could finally get the championship that has eluded him for so many years.
Whether or not Martin has a realistic shot at the championship can be
argued either way, but what can’t be debated is that it’s not a hyped up
stunt to grab headlines, it’s the real deal.
His History and Career.
Since his career began in the top level of stock car racing in 1981 at the age of 22, he has been runner up to the
championship 4 times. Along with that, he had an impressive streak which began in the second season after his full
time return to cup from 1989 through 2000 where he finished in the top 10 in points for 12 consecutive seasons.
Duly noted that it was after bouncing around from team to team the first five seasons of his career before settling in
with Jack Roush in which he went on his remarkable run. During that streak he recorded 32 of his 35 career cup
wins all while posting equally if not more impressive numbers in the now Nationwide, Truck & IROC with a total of 68
victories in those series.
Martin, who will be 50 years old when he begins driving for Hendrick, has defied the law of averages in how aging
competitors seem to lose their edge later in their careers. Running a part time schedule last season [24 of 36 races]
for the now defunct Ginn Motorsports, Martin climbed from the car as promised after the 4th race of the season
[Atlanta], while 4th in points. When he became part of Dale Earnhardt, Inc. through the merger/buyout, he continued
with his part time effort and managed a 27th position in the points rankings despite his part time status.
Does He Believe He Can Do It?
Looking to 2009, how realistic of a chance does Martin have at winning a championship? When asked about it, his
response has been that he will be racing against the likes of Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson & Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
[teammates] and in the same equipment. It is the sort of response that you would expect from a man with a
tremendous amount of talent, yet is extremely humble at the same time. He took the rule of ‘it’s okay to be cocky as
long as you could back it up on the track’ and skipped the first part.
When asked specifically about the championship factoring into his decision to return full time in the Cup Series, his
response was, “I don’t know, it could happen [winning the championship], but that’s not really it. I am having too much
fun driving these cars to go with what was offered [at DEI] and it wasn’t fair to Almirola who is ready to step up [full
time]. I told Rick [Hendrick] no twice, but I just couldn’t pass on the opportunity to drive for him.”
Why He Has A Shot.
His most recent stats from when he was competing full time at Roush go back to 2006 where he finished 9th in
points and in both 2005 & 2004 he finished 4th. Another impressive stat in regards to Martin’s consistency through
the years is that the first season that he finished 2nd in points was in 1990 and the last time was 2002, 12 years
apart. There are a lot of good drivers who have had a peak in a 12 year span, but in Martin’s case the ‘line chart’
has been on peak most of the time.
The thing that stands out the most about Mark Martin in his driving abilities is that he has the benefit of age and
wisdom with the talent and reflexes of a driver half his age. Crossing over into the Nationwide Series in the 3rd race
of 2008, he earned the first victory for JR Motorsports at Vegas in a car fielded by the newly formed partnership of
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Rick Hendrick. During the race in Vegas, if you didn’t know who was driving the car you
would have guessed it to be one of NASCAR’s young guns, charging up through the field, dive-bombing the turns
and making his car stick where others could not. He showed a fire to win in the closing laps at the expense of
spinning Carl Edwards in an incident that most considered to be just hard racing, because Martin does not have the
reputation for taking people out. It’s another distinction that he has earned over the years, to be a clean racer which
has garnered the respect of his peers in the garage as well as the fans.
Another Chance.
There is no doubt that the chances for Mark Martin to win the Championship in 2009 are a long shot, but in no other
circumstance does he have a better opportunity to do so. His overall performance and consistency is what keeps
him hovering close to the top, but what has eluded him is sufficient wins to put him into the coveted championship
spot. There have been a number of times that just one additional victory for him in the season would have won him
the championship and possibly he can find that missing piece of the puzzle at Hendrick.
If he does manage to pull it off, I doubt there will be even one detractor even if it comes down to him and Dale Jr.
battling it out to the last lap at Homestead. If ever there has been a competitor who deserved a championship, if
there is such a thing, then Mark Martin is the man. Either way it’s going to be exciting to watch.
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