Martin enjoying himself too much to slow down now

DARLINGTON, S.C. -- On the day before the summer event at Daytona International Speedway 10 years ago, Mark Martin crashed in practice and broke his wrist, his kneecap, and one of his ribs. The next night, he was back in the car. He didn't do it because he loved racing. He did it because he was running for a championship, and he couldn't afford to forsake any points by sitting out.

Chill out

Mark Martin and Kurt Busch explain how they have mellowed out as they have gotten older.

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The single-mindedness of that title quest -- which he would ultimately lose to Dale Jarrett by 319 points -- left Martin with back problems that lingered for a year and a half. Still, he never missed a practice, never missed a test, never allowed pain or physical limitations to interfere with his pursuit of NASCAR's biggest prize. Looking back on it now, he was consumed by it, even though he wouldn't have admitted so publicly at the time. It wasn't about love, it wasn't about passion, it was simply a means to an end.

"I allowed that points thing to affect how I felt about racing," Martin said Friday at Darlington Raceway. "I focused on that more than I really realized how much I loved it. When I finally stepped out of the car and did 26 races in '07, I started gradually to realize how much I love to race, and I'm going to keep it that way. That requires a little discipline for me, but that's how it's going to be. I'm going to continue to race because I love to race, and I'm not going to try to will more points than we can score at the finish line each week."

Which is why Martin, now older and wiser if even still without the championship that has eluded him, these days seems so content. He's still capable of winning races, still capable of contending for the championship, still capable of filling the one notable omission on his otherwise illustrious resume. But at 50, the pressure is off. So when car owner Rick Hendrick broached the idea of another full-time season following Martin's victory last month at Phoenix, it took the driver about one minute to say yes. (Continued)