NASCAR Winston Cup Bud at Watkins Glen Preview: #6, Mark Martin
5 August 1997
#6 Mark Martin, Valvoline/Cummins Ford Thunderbird
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The Bud at the Glen Advance
Watkins Glen International
MARK MARTIN NOTES & QUOTES: THE BUD AT THE GLEN
WATKINS GLEN, NY - Mark Martin is sitting in the driver's seat heading to
Watkins Glen International. Martin is currently second in Winston Cup points,
trailing Jeff Gordon by only 79 points. Watkins Glen is one of Martin's best
tracks and one of his best chances to slice Gordon's lead. In nine starts at
"The Glen," Martin has three consecutive wins (1993-1995), eight top-five's
and three poles. He has only finished out of the top-five once in his career,
his first season with Roush in 1988.
Martin tested a brand new Valvoline/Cummins Ford two weeks ago at Watkins
Glen in preparation for the upcoming race. After winning three years in a row
with the same car and finishing third last year, he decided it was time to
build a new road racing car. In his first few laps of testing the new car,
Martin missed the track record by only two-tenths of a second. To say the new
Roush chassis is good is an understatement.
I'm really excited to race at Watkins Glen," Martin said. "We ran so well at
the test that I feel very confident we'll race and qualify well. We've been
in a real qualifying rut lately. Most races we just make the top-25 in
qualifying. This week we'll be going for the pole and the win. The car just
got faster every time I went out. Earnhardt broke my track record last year,
maybe I can beat his this year."
Martin is knows as one of the series' most talented road course drivers. He
won the first road course race of the season at Sears Point in May, breaking
his 42-race winless streak. He led 69 of 74 laps at Sears Point from the pole.
"Road racing has always come naturally to me," Martin said. "I think it is an
ability that you either have, or you don't I can feel what line I should take
and how fast I should be going. Some drivers never feel comfortable on a road
course, but it has always been easier for me. I consider Rusty Wallace, Bill
Elliott, Terry Labonte and Geoff Bodine to be very competitive road racers."
Road courses have been good to Roush Racing this year. Jack Roush's drivers
are 10 for 10 on road courses, with Tommy Kendall winning eight Trans-Am
races, Martin winning at Sonoma and Joe Ruttman taking the Craftsman Truck
race in Topeka. Martin and Kendall hope to bump that total up to 12 at
Watkins Glen this weekend.
MARK MARTIN'S CAREER RECORD - WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL
DATE EVENT START FINISH LAPS STATUS MONEY WON
8/11/96 Bud at the Glen 10 3 90 Running 44,755
8/13/95 Bud at the Glen 1 1 90 Running 95,290
8/14/94 Bud at the Glen 1 1 90 Running 85,100
8/8/93 Bud at the Glen 1 1 90 Running 166,110
8/9/92 Bud at the Glen 5 4 51 Running 28,325
8/11/91 Bud at the Glen 2 3 90 Running 31,440
8/12/90 Bud at the Glen 3 5 90 Running 20,790
8/13/89 Bud at the Glen 11 2 90 Running 32,550
8/14/88 Bud at the Glen 15 28 86 Running 2,925
Races Wins Top 5 Top 10 Poles Money Won
TOTALS 9 3 8 8 3 507,285
By Roush Racing Public Relations