Before he could break a sweat, a multicar wreck broke Mark Martin's heart. Credit: AP

Cross' Words: Talladega

If there is a finer gentleman in the sport than Mark Martin, please stand up. Often described as a racer's racer, Martin is the epitome of what stock car racing should be.

Too many times these drivers spout the company line, quoting sponsor after sponsor ad nausea (See: Waltrip, Michael). Martin, too, can spin a tale but Sunday it was more than refreshing to hear frustration expressed in such a clear manner.

Inside the Chase Point standings after 'Dega No. Driver Pts. Behind 1. T. Stewart 5,519 -- 2. R. Newman 5,515 -4 3. R. Wallace 5,443 -76 4. J. Johnson 5,437 -82 5. G. Biffle 5,421 -98 6. C. Edwards 5,419 -100 7. M. Kenseth 5,408 -111 8. J. Mayfield 5,407 -112 9. M. Martin 5,381 -138 10. Ku. Busch 5,339 -180 • Race Results, click here • Cup Standings, click here Victory LaneDale Jarrett celebrates his second win at Talladega Talladega tumbleRiggs goes for a wild ride and Rusty, Johnson collected UAW-Ford 500Catch all the 'Dega highlights with TrackPass Sign up for TrackPass now BUY YOUR NEXTEL DRIVER PHONE

Martin's 2005 championship hopes took a severe blow Sunday; he's now relegated to hoping the eight drivers in front of him are befallen by bad luck during the final seven races. In fact, those eight drivers need to have multiple bad-luck races for Martin to erase his 138-point deficit.

After being caught up in a crash on Lap 20 -- another of the "that's just Talladega" wrecks that too often takes out it wrath on the unsuspecting -- Martin was frank:

"I just want to say one thing, the fans are the only ones that can do something about this. No one else can -- the drivers can't, the owners can't and NASCAR's not gonna do anything about it. I doubt if the fans can either. I know that it's exciting racing to watch, but I didn't even get a sweat worked up."

Nonetheless, there will be 175,000 folks back in the stands on April 30 and Oct. 8 next year. And Martin will be strapped into the No. 6 car hoping for the best, knowing that he cannot control what goes on around him.

And NASCAR knows that's the case at every track -- short, intermediate and superspeedway -- which is why nothing will be done to curb restrictor-plate racing.

It's just one of those racin' deals.

Flags

• Red -- Kurt Busch finished in the top 10 at Talladega and still lost 10 points to leader Tony Stewart. I think it's safe to say the Cup Series won't have its first repeat champion since Jeff Gordon (1997-98). That humming sound is the fat lady, getting ready to take center stage.

• Yellow -- Speaking of Gordon, he was a casualty of the carnage at 'Dega; he finished 37th for the second week in a row. If you're keeping score at home, that's eight DNFs for the season and his ninth finish of 30th or worse since his unforgettable appearance at Wrigley Stadium.

• Green -- Give it up for Dave Blaney! His 15th-place finish Sunday was the No. 07's best showing since an eight-place finish -- his only top-10 this year -- at Atlanta on March 20. Between then and now, his best showing was two 19th-place finishes in 24 races.

Quote, Unquote

"I'm like a mule. I can take it. The safety devices are incredible today. We used to take those kind of whoopings without all that stuff and it was a lot worse. This one is over with and we'll pick up and go on."
-- Mark Martin, after his car was destroyed in a crash

• Martin: Title in God's hands

Around the Track

• Dale Jarrett's victory at Talladega snapped a streak of 14th-or-worse finishes in his past 11 races. He had led only two laps in through 28 races this year, but matched that total Sunday.

• Tony Stewart's four-point lead over Ryan Newman can be traced to, among other things, laps led. Smoke has led the most laps in 10 of the 29 races this season and has 120 lap leader bonus points -- both tops among all drivers.

• Five of the Chase drivers were involved in accidents at Talladega: Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin, Greg Biffle, Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch. As a result, nine of the top-10 positions changed. (Only Busch, in 10th, remained the same.)

	Inside the Numbers Most career Cup starts through Oct. 2, 2005 Rank Driver No. 1. Richard Petty 1,185 2. Dave Marcis 883 3. Ricky Rudd * 848 4. Terry Labonte * 829 5. Darrell Waltrip 809 6. Bill Elliott * 745 7. Kyle Petty * 742 8. Bobby Allison 719 9. Buddy Baker 701 10. Rusty Wallace * 699 * -- Active driver

Up Next

Kansas Speedway

• Rusty Wallace will make his 700th career Cup start at Kansas. Wallace, who made his debut on March 16, 1980, at Atlanta, is 10th on the all-time list. Next up: Buddy Baker with 701 starts. Wallace will retire ninth on the list.

• All four races at Kansas have been won from a starting position of 11th or better. Two of the four races have been won from the front row, including last year when Joe Nemechek won from the pole.

• For the third consecutive week there is a different 11th-place driver. Kevin Harvick, who finished 10th at Talladega, has climbed from 16th to 11th in the point standings in the past five races. Jamie McMurray and Elliott Sadler, the previous two 11th-place drivers, now are 12th and 13th.

Mail Call

Last week I asked for your take on the 10 tracks that should be in the Chase. More than 700 e-mails later, the survey says:

Atlanta
Bristol
Darlington
Daytona
Las Vegas
Martinsville
Michigan
Richmond
Talladega
Watkins Glen

Texas just missed making the top 10, and Phoenix was a close 12th.

E-MAIL •   Send Duane your thoughts ...

Rockingham was mentioned in 70 percent of the e-mails, but again that's a topic for another day.

As for my poohbah-for-a-day plan, here's what I didn't tell you last week:

• Goodbye, common templates; hello, again, cars you can identify at a glance. Race it on Sunday, sell it on Monday.

• Add one-half inch of spoiler.

• Harden the tire compound just a little. There must be a happy medium between the current rubber and that from a couple years ago.

• Pare the schedule to 32 races -- gone are a race each from:

Pocono
Michigan
California
New Hampshire

• Adjust the points after 18 races, beginning at 5,000 points:

Nos. 1-15 (or within 500 points) are separated by five points
Nos. 16-20 are separated by 15 points
Nos. 21-25 are separated by 20 points
Nos. 26-30 are separated by 25 points
Nos. 31-35 are separated by 30 points
Nos. 36-40 are separated by 40 points
Everyone else is separated by 50 points

• A four-race Sprint to the Nextel Cup. Races 19-22:

Martinsville
Phoenix
Dover
Richmond

Imagine a month-long March Madness-type environment -- all under the lights. And the kicker: Win and you're in (but from your current point position; a freakish win cannot besmirch the integrity of the standings).

OK, so I was tough on Dover last week and some people may think I'm flip-flopping, but if the spoiler and tire changes are made, racing there becomes respectable again. Shed some light on the track and it would be a jewel during the Sprint.

After Richmond, any driver still in the top 15, within 500 points or a winner during the Sprint makes the 10-race Chase. However, the $1 million bonus still goes to the 11th-place finisher.

This format also helps the teams in the hunt for a top-35 place in owner points. Coming to the track every week is noble for the teams with little chance of a) competing for the win or b) posting a lead-lap finish.

However, if these teams know there still is a chance of landing a top-35 finish in owner points -- and thus being guaranteed a spot in the next race -- well, let the back-of-the-pack jockeying begin.

• Then comes the Chase for the Nextel Cup:

Darlington
Watkins Glen
Michigan
Pocono
Las Vegas
Bristol
Atlanta
Kansas
Texas
Daytona

By knifing one month from the schedule, weather should not be a factor at any of the northern tracks.

• The Chase drivers are scored under a different system.

A win is worth 200 points; second place 150 points; third place 125 points; fourth place 110 points; fifth place 100 points. After that, Nos. 6-10 are awarded between 75-55 points at five-point increments; Nos. 11-15 get 50-38 points at three-point increments.

The bottom line: It'll tighten the points race. The victor gets truly awarded for winning, while at the same time a bad finish doesn't nix a driver's chances in the first few weeks of the Chase.

So where's Charlotte? Considering the high-dollar stakes in play for Cup races, Charlotte will have to settle for the Memorial Day race and the All-Star weekend. Those are two very high-profile events, so if the all-star race isn't rotated around to other facilities, the track doesn't make my Chase.

Fantasy Perspective

• Jimmie Johnson has a 2.3 starting average in three races at Kansas, the best among active drivers with more than one start. He has a 16.3 finishing average.

• Jeff Gordon has a 5.0 finishing average in four races at Kansas, tops among all drivers. His starting average is 12.3.

• Mark Martin has only one top-10 finish in four races at Kansas. His last three finishes there were all 20th or worse.

Finally, for those of you who followed the fantasy racing on 790 The Ball in the Triad, Marc Amazon is off to bigger and better things. He leaves after gaining 12 points last week to boost his season total to 470. However, since he won't be around for the stretch run, we will award him the Sterling Marlin trophy and continue to the checkered flag. Best of luck, Amazon.