Mark Martin never saw it coming.

Not this kind of season, thus far zero race victories and likely whiffing on the Chase altogether, not after pushing eventual four-time champion Jimmie Johnson to the final week of last year. Sure, things change, sometimes markedly so in NASCAR, where it's not unusual for teams to swing from top of the standings to middle of the pack - or vice versa -- in a matter of 12 months. But for a No. 5 program that showed so few weaknesses last year, that was buoyed by a driver who seemed immune to pressure, it's been a shockingly unexpected plummet.

“

When I look back on it, I've been very, very fortunate to have been incredibly successful at doing what I have passion for and love. And I'm no champion. I'm just lucky I got to win a pile of races.

”

-- MARK MARTIN

"Expectations are really tough to deal with when you don't meet them," Martin said this week, before heading to Richmond International Raceway for the event that would determine the 12-man Chase field. "And that's why I've tried so hard to limit and keep my expectations in check. But still, yet, even as much as I do that, you know, I couldn't have ever been prepared for having as tough a year as what we've had."

How tough? Nothing like the magic carpet ride of last season, when Martin became the oldest driver to win a race in NASCAR's premier division in 16 years, and came within 141 points of becoming the sport's oldest champion. He won five times -- the most since his heyday with Jack Roush -- in a season that seemed like a gift. Now, the confetti has long since been swept up, the sprayed champagne has long since dried. He fell to 15th in points after another disappointing effort at Atlanta, and barring a miracle of miracles won't be part of the championship field decided at Richmond.

Which means, essentially, that Martin has one more season to chase the title that's always eluded him, the one he's been the runner-up for five heartbreaking times. He has one more season left on his contract at Hendrick Motorsports, and then he turns his No. 5 car over to Kasey Kahne, a young driver needed at an organization that suddenly skews very middle-age. When Martin steps out of that vehicle after next year, he'll be closing in on his 53rd birthday. It's hard to imagine that he won't still compete somewhere -- Martin bristles at the word retirement -- even if just on a part-time basis. There are plenty of teams that could use his experience and leadership, and even at 53 he'll still be better than plenty of other drivers out there.

But it's also hard to believe he'll be in a car as good as that No. 5, which after years of being viewed as a Hendrick stepchild came to life under Kyle Busch and was elevated to the level of championship contender under Martin. Kahne, who's done wonders in Richard Petty Motorsports equipment not nearly as strong as its competition, seems more than capable of continuing that trend. Martin has a museum and a car dealership in Arkansas he can oversee, and an airplane he loves to fly and a family he surely will want to spend more time with. But he also loves NASCAR, loves the people involved with it, clearly loves to compete. The idea of Martin without a steering wheel in his hands seems alien, like seeing Roush without his famous hat.

A Cup championship, though, is another matter. Oh, the close calls: 1990, when he was docked 46 points for use of a carburetor spacer at Richmond that was later deemed illegal (but not performance-enhancing), and lost to Dale Earnhardt by 26 points; 1994, when the Intimidator ran away from everyone; 1998, when Jeff Gordon won 13 times during one of the best seasons of the modern era; 2002, when Martin incurred another penalty (this one 25 points for an illegal spring) and lost a narrow battle by 38 points to Tony Stewart; and last year, again the bridesmaid as Johnson made history. Martin seems to have long made his peace with all that. It's as much a part of him as his short, spiky hair.

"Got in the Cup [Series] in my second year with Roush, we went into the last race in second in the points and we broke an engine and wound up third. And then my third year, we nearly won it," Martin said, recalling 1990. "And you know, there was all the controversy about the points penalty that we got and whether or not we should have got really a points penalty or not in the first place, based on what the infraction was. Whatever the controversy was. And you know what, it didn't bother me, because I knew, and anybody would know, based on the experience that I had had, that I would win one." (Continued)