| | | | | | GOING FOR THREE | Martin gunning for third all-star race victory | |
| | SceneDaily Staff Mark Martin will be seeking his third win in the Sprint All-Star Race this weekend.
The Dale Earnhardt inc. driver has 90 career wins in NASCAR’s top three series during his career, but he ranks those two victories in the annual all-star event high on his list.
He won the race driving for Roush Racing in 1998 and 2005.
When he won in 2005, he took the lead in the final segment and held on.
"That was just a great night,” said Martin, who will start is 19th consecutive all-star event this Saturday night and his first behind the wheel of the No. 8 DEI Chevrolet. “…We didn’t have the best car that night, but we just wanted it more. We took the lead during the first segment, and they inverted the field. We drove back through the field and took the lead again with about 20 to go and just pulled away from the field. It was just one of those special nights where it all came together.
“You race for nights like that, and it was a very rewarding win for us.”
In 1998, he won the race that was then known as The Winston when Jeff Gordon ran out of fuel on the final lap.
“Sometimes the sweetest victories are the ones that you don’t expect,” Martin said. “They say that second place doesn’t pay, but it sure does when the guy leading runs out of gas on the last lap. Jeff ran out of fuel, and we passed him and got a very surprising win that day.”
If Martin wins Saturday night, he’ll tie with Dale Earnhardt and Gordon for the most wins in the all-star event.
He admits that doing that, especially while driving for the team that Earnhardt founded, would be special.
“It is one of the most exciting events of the season,” Martin said. “People can just forget about points and all of that stuff and just go for it. That makes it a great show for the fans, and it makes it a pretty fun race to drive in. I’m looking forward to getting out there and seeing what we can do.” | | Posted May 13, 2008 , 12:23 am EST
Last Updated May 16, 2008 , 3:04 am EST | | | | | | | | | | |
