Mark Martin raises some interesting points about points racing. (Photo: Getty Images)

Not this year: The way it looks right now, Mark Martin does not have to worry about the agony of finishing second yet again in the Sprint Cup standings. You have to be in the Chase to finish second and Martin keeps picking up downward momentum in the standings.

Martin has just two top-12 finishes in his last 10 races. At Bristol, he started 13th on the grid and finished 23rd. He slipped from 13th in points to 14th. With two races remaining before the Chase, Martin is 101 points out.

Worse, several other drivers have crept up behind him and all of them are hot while Martin is not.

Next up is Atlanta, a place where Martin has not won since 1994. After that, it’s on to Richmond where Martin has not won since 1990.

And make no mistake, Martin needs at least one victory in the next two races just to put himself in position to finish second in points again.

Unfortunately, it looks like if Martin is to retire with a championship ring, he will have to earn it in what just has to be his final full-time season.

Or not. One prominent Cup team boss told me last week that Martin could be that rare breed which can win races and championships well into his 50s. Would that guy hire him after Martin’s contract runs out with Hendrick?

“Heck yes,” the boss said.
—
Locked in: Jeff Gordon's hopes for a fifth Cup championship remain strong, however.

Gordon locked himself in the playoffs by finishing 11th at Bristol.

If a driver with zero season victories is going to win the championship this year, and that is stacking up as a very real possibility, Gordon could be the guy to do it.

“We’ve had a heck of a season,” he said. “Very consistent runs and strong runs. We haven’t won yet, I still think we have a heck of a shot at the championship. I am really happy to be in the Chase again. Right now we are focused on wins and bonus points and I am a little disappointed with an 11th place finish tonight but it wasn’t from a lack of effort, that is for sure.”
—
Locked out? Then there is the anti-Gordon, Jamie McMurray.

For weeks it has looked like the winner of the two biggest events of the season – the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400 – would have zero chance of winning the championship. McMurray, it appeared, would miss the Chase.

He probably still will, but after Bristol, he at least put himself in a position (100 points out) to where people could ask him his thoughts about making the Chase. Like:

Question: Can you do it in 12 races?

McMurray: “I don’t know everybody worries about points but every time I do we struggle. I appreciate you telling me how far we are out but it is really irrelevant. We have had a great season and in two races a lot can happen. And fortunately there is only one guy you have to beat now and when you have four or five in between you it makes it a lot harder but that is cool, the cars are fast right now.”

Question (kind of): You’re now in 13th.

McMurray: “Yeah, I let Bono worry about the points. He’s really worried about that and I haven’t paid any attention to it. That’s a lot of stress that you can put on yourself when you’re worried about points. So I’ll let Bono and those guys worry about it and we’ll just worry about racing the car.”

Clint Bowyer (Pictured) held off Ken Schrader in a green-white-checkered finish at Volusia Speedway Park for the first victory of his career in the DIRTcar Nationals. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Bubble dude: It looks like only one driver can fall out of the Chase in the final two races this year and that’s Clint Bowyer.

Bowyer is 12th in points and has four guys breathing hot air on him.

But if Bowyer drives the rest of the season the way he drove at Bristol, where he survived all matter of adversity to finish fourth, he could win his first series championship.

“I messed up in the pits and got us a pit road speed penalty,” Bowyer said. “But the guys responded good. We had a good weekend with the Hamburger Helper Chevrolet and I’m just proud of our effort. This is exactly what we needed and the boys did a good job.”

Of course to win a championship, Bowyer will have to deal with the triple Bristol winner.

“Kyle Busch? Little turd. three races right here at Bristol; that’s pretty cool, love him or hate him,” Bowyer said.

The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEEDtv.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or Speed Channel

Jim Pedleyis a veteran, award-winning sports journalist who has worked at, among other places, the Boston Globe, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and the Kansas City Star. Pedley spent more than 10 years covering auto racing for the Kansas City Star. Pedley can be reached at jpedley@racintoday.com

Page 2 of 2

Prev

12

Next