by Carol Henrichs

Created on: October 12, 2009

Fans of NASCAR driver Mark Martin may want to pay close attention to the remainder of the 2009 NASCAR season. This could be the year that the 50-year old driver from Batesville, Arkansas. Mark Martin has a shot at winning the coveted '09 NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.

Martin's teammate at Hendrick Motor Sports is the current three-time champion, Jimmie Johnson. Many consider Johnson the favorite to win a fourth consecutive title. But a few eyebrows were raised when Johnson finished ninth at Kansas. Martin finished in seventh place, which allowed him to remain ahead of Johnson in the point's standings.

The California race made only a slight change. With Martin finishing fourth to Johnson's victory, he is only 12 points behind the reigning champion. There is lots of racing left to go and Mark Martin remains in position.

So far this season, Martin has won five races, sat in the pole position for seven, and has achieved the top in the point's standings.

But with six races to go, any one of the top 12 elite drivers chasing the championship could be the victor. The winner will likely not be determined until the checkered flag waves at Homestead, Florida after the last lap of that last race of the season.

Martin undoubtedly can envision what it would be like to be the champion. He has been so close; coming in second four times in his career. In 1990, he was just 26 points away from the title that has so far eluded him.

Mark Martin has won championships

Early in his career, in 1974 when Martin was a youthful dirt-track racer, he was the Arkansas state champion. In 1977, he began competing in the American Speed Association (ASA) where he won three consecutive championships. It was only after that feat that he moved to NASCAR's elite series with only five starts in what was then the Winston Cup series. Martin left NASCAR for two years. He won a fourth ASA championship in 1986. He returned to NASCAR in '87.

But as close as Martin was to winning the most prestigious title in stock car racing, he was just as close to hanging up his helmet. In 2005, Martin announced that he would retire the following year. But, he was later asked by his car owner Jack Roush to stay. He complied. The following year, Martin ran only part-time schedule. It wasn't until this year that Martin returned to race full-time-this time in a Hendrick car.

Martin is the oldest driver in the garage and with his age comes vast experience. The one that he has yet to enjoy, however, is to win the Sprint Cup. His museum, located in his home town in Batesville, Arkansas is filled with trophy cases. But the one Martin really wants-the sterling silver checkered-flag trophy presented at the awards banquet in Las Vegas is not there yet. Perhaps this will be the year.

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