NASCAR - Mark Martin Obtains His Fourth Title of the Season in the Sprint Cup

By Stephen Lars

Even when he is not in first place for overall driver’s standings, veteran driver Mark Martin is still the one who has achieved so far the largest number of victories for the 2009 season of the NASCAR Sprint Cup. By now, the driver of the # 5 Chevrolet has achieved four wins; his last victory took place this past weekend at the Chicagoland Speedway, the nineteenth event of NASCAR’s top racing series this season.

With this fourth victory, Mark Martin added 39 victories to his career as a professional driver in the Sprint Series. He is currently positioned in eleventh place for the overall standings, which gives him the opportunity to be part of the group of the 12 drivers that will qualify for the Chase for the Sprint Cup. As long as Martin maintains himself in this position, his participation in the Chase will be guaranteed.

At the LifeLock 400, Martin started at 14th place in the starting grid, a position that for many seemed a little distant from the top places, but seemed quite the opposite for the Hendrick Motorsports driver; instead of looking at his positioning as an obstacle, he took it as a challenge that he was ready to face. With his cleverness, his great experience, and his driving skills, he was able to succeed.

In Chicago, the competition began with both pilots of Team Red Bull Racing, Brian Vickers and Scott Speed, controlling the action from first and second place respectively. Jimmie Johnson, however, who started at third, struggled to reach them until he got to the head of the race; Johnson then advanced at full speed, setting himself ahead by such a distance that many people thought that he would take the victory.

While this was happening, Mark Martin escalated positions, planning to reach and overtake the leaders. Martin finally moved to the head of the competition, a position he held for a lengthy 195 laps of the 267 scheduled; with this accomplishment, the veteran also set the record for the maximum number of laps as leader at the Chicagoland track.

Despite the race’s rapid pace, all the maneuvering developed in a very orderly fashion, with no accidents in the major parts of the route. In fact, only three caution flags were raised for accidents that occurred after the 218th lap, where Sam Hornish Jr. was the first to get hit.

As the challenge continued, some changes in the leadership also took place. There were ten occasions during which Mark Martin kept himself close behind the tour’s leader, looking for the right moment to overtake him and gain the top stop.

Upon reaching the 227th lap, again Johnson placed himself in first, but an incident between him and Kurt Busch allowed Martin to regain the much fought-over lead. Martin was able to maintain the lead until the end of the competition, crossing the finish line in first place and being proclaimed the event’s absolute leader. Behind Martin were Jeff Gordon in second and Kasey Kahne in third. The three completed the podium.

About the Author
Stephen Lars has been a prominent writer on daily NASCAR races; sports news and the sportsbetting industry for many exceptional sport web sites. You may reprint this article in its full content, please note no modifications to it are accepted.