NASCAR Cup
Indianapolis: Mark Martin preview
Martin 'calls Shot ' for BRICKYARD VICTORY After an off weekend in the Sprint Cup Series, Mark Martin and the No. 8 U.S. Army Race Team return to action this weekend at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway where Martin and the team will set their ...
Published: Jul 23, 2008, 8:04 PM
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Martin 'calls Shot ' for BRICKYARD VICTORY
After an off weekend in the Sprint Cup Series, Mark Martin and the No. 8 U.S. Army Race Team return to action this weekend at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway where Martin and the team will set their sights on one of the crown jewels in all of motorsports -- the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard.
Worthy Note: Martin has finished top 10 in his last three races at Indy and in four of the last five.
CALLING HIS SHOT
Martin shocked several members of the media by basically predicting a Brickyard win earlier this year in the media center after qualifying at Pocono.
"I'm planning on winning the Brickyard in the No. 8 car. We have the stuff, we have the team. The cars are awesome on flat tracks like Phoenix and Richmond...I believe we can adapt that setup to work better at Indy. The team is strong enough on pit road and (crew chief) Tony Gibson and the guys on that team are due a win," said Martin to a stunned media on hand in Pocono.
MARTIN AT THE BRICKYARD
Martin has finished inside the top 10 in nine of his 14 starts at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, including a sixth-place run there last year. Furthermore, Martin has scored top-10 finishes in the last three races at the Brickyard and in four of the last five. If not for running over a piece of debris on the final lap of the first ever Sprint Cup Series green-white-checkered finish in 2004, Martin would have five consecutive top-10 finishes at Indy.
Martin's success at the Brickyard has been a story of hot and cold. He finished 35th in the inaugural race there in 1994 after getting caught up in an accident. He then posted five straight top-six runs from 1995-1999. Martin has finished either top nine, or 22nd or worse in all 14 of his starts at Indy.
LOOKING TO KISS THE BRICKS
Indy is one of six tracks (Loudon, Daytona, Chicago, Pocono and Homestead) where the veteran has not won in a Sprint Cup point race. Ironically five of those six tracks come in order on the Cup schedule from late June into August.
MARK:
"I've been looking to this race for quite some time actually. A few weeks ago, we kind of shocked everyone in the media center when I said that we were going to Indy looking to win the Brickyard 400, but I meant what I said. Indy is one of the crown jewels of racing and we have the team that can get it done. Our car was awesome at Phoenix and Richmond and we parked it after that in order to have it for the Brickyard 400. What we learned at those tracks should really apply well at Indy and I'm excited about our chances this weekend.
"This U.S. Army Team is strong enough on pit road and (crew chief) Tony Gibson and the guys on this team are due a win. Nothing will make me happier than to see their faces in victory lane. Sometimes miracles happen and it all works out. It almost did at Daytona for us last year, and Daytona and the Brickyard are the two that would be crown jewels of my career. This team can do it."
-credit: dei
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