FULL SPEED AHEAD
Mark Martin refuses to dwell on his near miss a year ago at Daytona.
“I don’t look back,” Martin said. “That’s the way I have always been. I am a looking-forward kind of guy.”
When he looked back in the final lap of last year’s Daytona 500, Kevin Harvick was streaking past him in one of the most exciting finishes in the 49-year history of the race. After 500 miles, Harvick beat Martin not by a nose, but by the grill of his car, denying the NASCAR veteran his place in Daytona’s history.
Another year brings another opportunity for Martin and Harvick. Harvick’s win at Daytona was one of the few highlights in an otherwise forgettable year. After the victory, many thought Harvick would emerge as one of the top drivers in the sport, but instead it was racing as usual with Jimmie Johnson winning his second consecutive points championship.
Today is Harvick’s chance to prove that last year was no fluke.
“I put a lot of pressure on myself regardless of the situation,” Harvick said. “I just can’t stand losing. We have always been able to win in everything that we have done.
“We are going to go out and try to win the Daytona 500 every year. Winning takes that sense of urgency away from you when you go down there, but you still want to go out and win.”
Martin takes little out of last year’s disappointment. He is in a new car with a new team after Bobby Ginn Racing merged with Dale Earnhardt Incorporated toward the end of last season.
“Last year was last year,” Martin said. “That doesn’t mean you are going to do good this year. DEI has a great record at Daytona, and hopefully we will keep it going.”
Martin has the pressure of replacing Dale Earnhardt Jr. who defected from DEI, the company his father built, for the greener pastures of Hendrick Motor Sports. Earnhardt Jr. took advantage of his new surroundings by winning last week’s Budweiser Shootout.
“I really like working with [crew chief] Tony Gibson and the whole team,” said Martin who will be in the No. 8 car for DEI. “It’s a new group, but I feel like I have been working with them forever.”
Harvick’s victory last year was improbable as it gets. He came from 29th to first after the field restarted with 22 laps to go.
“I just remember coming back through the field,” Harvick said. “We got three-wide, four-wide, we scraped the wall a few times and just missed a couple of wrecks.
“Everything played out perfectly. . . . It was probably one of the most aggressive races I have been in going from the back to the front.”
Harvick was able to get to the outside and use a push from Matt Kenseth and Jeff Burton to surpass Martin. The level of dependence on the other drivers in the field is what makes the 2.5-mile oval at Daytona unique.
It also can be frustrating if you are going for your first win at Daytona in your 23rd attempt. This afternoon will be Martin’s 24th try.
“It is what it is and it is a tremendous challenge because a lot of times the things you do on the race track depends on other people,” Martin said.
“A decision can be right or wrong depending on the other drivers. And if I do something and the guy behind me joins, that might make me the hero. If he decides he does not want to do that, then you are a zero. That makes it kind of hard.”
