Mark Martin

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Mark Martin bigraphy, stories - American stock car racing driver

Mark Martin : biography

January 9, 1959 –

Mark Anthony Martin (born January 9, 1959) is an American stock car driver. He currently drives the #55 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry for Michael Waltrip Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series on a part-time basis. He has the second most wins in the Nationwide Series with 49. He has finished second in the Sprint Cup Series standings five times and has been described by ESPN as "The best driver to never win a championship."

Michael Waltrip Racing

2012

On November 4, 2011, Michael Waltrip Racing announced that Martin would replace David Reutimann in 2012, signing him to a two-year deal to drive the #55. He will drive 25 races in both 2012 and 2013, sharing the car with Michael Waltrip and Brian Vickers. Martin finished the year with 4 top 5s and 10 top 10s. He led the most laps after winning the pole at the 2012 Pure Michigan 400, but was involved in a bizarre accident around lap 64. Martin was about to lap Bobby Labonte and Juan Pablo Montoya when Labonte’s car got loose, collecting Martin and Kasey Kahne. Martin’s car skidded down pit road and the car was penetrated on the opening in the pit wall right behind the driver’s compartment, breaching the car’s oil tank, and sending Kahne’s pit crew scrambling for cover.

2013

Martin’s 2013 season started with a third place finish in the Daytona 500. He backed up his strong Daytona finish by winning the pole for the Subway Fresh Fit 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, becoming the second-oldest driver to win a pole in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He finished 21st at Phoenix, followed by a 14th place finish at Las Vegas. Martin skipped Bristol, where Brian Vickers drove the car. When Martin returned at Fontana, he finished 37th after spinning on the back straightaway late race, collecting David Gilliland. A few days later, Joe Gibbs hired Martin to drive Denny Hamlin’s #11 FedEx Toyota at Martinsville after Hamlin suffered a compression fracture of a vertebra in his lower back after being involved in a crash with Joey Logano on the last lap of the Fontana race. In his one appearance in the #11, Martin was involved in a melee on lap 180, taking damage, and later had a miscue on a pit stop that caused him to be penalized a lap, but he managed to finish 10th. Following two top 15 finishes in his original car in the next two races, Martin qualified 10th at Richmond, but finished 38th after an accident on lap 348. At the Coca-Cola 600, on lap 324, Martin was involved in a crash with Jeff Gordon and Aric Almirola, which brought out the red flag.

Hendrick Motorsports

2009

On July 4, 2008, Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick and Martin announced that he would replace Casey Mears in the #5 car for the 2009 season, running a full-time schedule for the first time since 2006. Martin signed a two-year contract with Hendrick, with a full-time schedule for 2009 and 2010. Martin grabbed his first pole since 2001 at the Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta, and followed up with back-to-back poles in the following week at Bristol.

On April 18, 2009, Martin became the fourth driver to win a Cup race in NASCAR after turning 50, winning the 2009 Subway Fresh Fit 500 from the pole position. The other three were Bobby Allison, Morgan Shepherd (twice), and Harry Gant (8 times, last in 1992).http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/feb/12/120810/sp-not-done-yet/ His win snapped a 97-race winless streak going back to 2005. After the victory, he did a Polish Victory Lap as a tribute to his late friend Alan Kulwicki, at the place where Kulwicki did his first Polish Victory Lap. At Darlington, it was announced after the Richmond race that Martin would drive full-time again in 2010; Martin would go on to win the Southern 500. It was his first multiple-win season since 1999. In the 2009 LifeLock 400, Martin won his third race of the season when Jimmie Johnson and Greg Biffle ran out of fuel in the last two laps. Martin added a series-leading fourth win at the LifeLock.com 400 at Chicagoland in July, holding off a charging Jeff Gordon. Because he and teammate Gordon also finished 1–2 at the LifeLock 400 at Michigan in June, LifeLock will pay a $1 million bonus to a family in Colorado. Despite his series-leading four wins, due to some early season troubles, including two engine failures, a blown tire, and getting caught up in multi-car wrecks at Talladega and Daytona, Martin had struggled to get into the top 12, moving up two spots to 11th place with the win at Chicagoland Speedway. Martin also got his fifth pole of the 2009 season at Bristol Motor Speedway for the Sharpie 500.