---

NASCAR: Martin Already Thinking Points

14 March 2000

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

There was a time when NASCAR people started thinking about points around Labor Day at Darlington's tradition-filled Southern 500. No more. With the Winston Cup championship now so prestigious -- and lucrative -- Mark Martin says those calculations begin at the Daytona 500.

"That (thinking about points) drives you crazy," admits Martin, now second in the standings after a third-place finish last Sunday at Atlanta in the Valvoline Ford Taurus. "It's become so important, in so many ways, that it has taken a lot of the fun out of the races."

As an example, Martin cites last year's race at Texas, where he led until a deflated tire caused an accident. "I didn't sleep Sunday night after Texas. I flew home, took a shower, went to bed and laid there. We were trying to be conservative. I have enough experience that when I saw Jeff Gordon have one (accident) and Mike Skinner have one, it shouldn't have happened to me. I couldn't sleep, and you know why? It's just one race . . . but those darned points. That's an example of how important the points are now.

"Now, it's just not OK when you're running along and somebody, a lapped car, tags you and takes you out. It makes you want to fight. This cost you 100 points and it could make the difference between winning and losing."

Text provided by Michael A. Knight

Editors Note: To view hundreds of hot racing photos and art, visit The Racing Photo Museum and the Visions of Speed Art Gallery.