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Martin is winless in the past 65 Winston Cup Series races. He knows Sunday's finish was a step in the right direction, but not the final answer.
"We have run so bad recently," Martin said. "I had so much more car today (Sunday) than I've had in a year. Going from where we're at to winning; we've got a lot more work to do but at least we're gaining on it.
"This gives us our first light at the end of the tunnel."
Martin and Roush Racing teammate Kurt Busch swapped crew chiefs in the off-season. Jimmy Fennig, who called the shots for 14 of Martin's 32 career victories, went to Busch, while Martin got Ben Leslie from Busch's team.
"I know these guys can still build a better car and they do, too. We could possible have set our car up better today. But I know we got everything out of it that we could.
"I get frustrated at times like everyone else. Ben gives me the help that I need by fighting for those things with a lot of thought. When you start putting repetition into what these guys are doing, I think you'll see us getting better and better."
Martin has long been known for his competitive spirit and determination. Nearly 500 races into his career, that hasn't changed a bit.
"I'm not, I repeat not, going to go out there and run and run for 25th," Martin said. "I did that for a long time. It felt like that for a long time, too."
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