Martin's consistency proof he's a 2009 Cup contender

CONCORD, N.C. -- Sure, the 2008 Chase for the Sprint Cup championship is getting mighty interesting.

But what about the 2009 Chase? Why not take a very premature peek about how it might shape up?

More directly to the point, did Saturday night's results in the Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway shed some light on how it could differ from the current Chase that likely is now down to a three-man duel between race winner Jeff Burton, current points leader Jimmie Johnson and Greg Biffle?

After capturing his second win of the season Saturday, Burton is second in the standings and trails Johnson by only 69 points heading into this Sunday's race at Martinsville. Biffle is third, just 86 points off the pace and a mere 17 behind Burton.

Conspicuously missing from this year's Chase is one veteran driver who showed again on Saturday that he could make a run at a championship next season. That would be Mark Martin, who drove the No. 8 Chevrolet fielded by Dale Earnhardt Inc. to a ninth-place finish.

Martin isn't in this year's Chase because, for the second year in a row, he's driving only part time. Saturday's start was his 21st of this season, but the finish was his 11th inside the top 10. Martin has more top-10 finishes in fewer starts than the likes of defending Daytona 500 champion Ryan Newman, 2006 Chasers Martin Truex Jr. and Kurt Busch, and a host of others.

And next year, Martin will be driving full time again as he already has announced plans to get behind the wheel of the No. 5 Chevy of Hendrick Motorsports currently being piloted by Casey Mears. Not only will Martin be making a return to full-time racing, but he'll be doing it in good equipment.

So there is a very good chance, a probability even, that Martin could make the Chase next year at the ripe old racing age of 50.

Just a number
Burton, for one, said after winning Saturday that in racing as in life, you're only as old as you feel or act. He's 41, for example, and is contending for his first championship with the confidence that he may now possess the knowledge it takes to actually win one.

"No one's ever proven to me why you can't do at 41 what you could do at 23. If you convince yourself you can't, then you can't," Burton said. "Put Mark Martin in a car and have him race against a 21-year-old, and see what that 21-year-old thinks when he gets back out of it. It is what it is.

"We're lucky to be in a sport where you can be successful in your 40s. You know, you can convince yourself you're too old to do it. Trust me, a lot of people will try to convince you you're too old to do it. But with age comes a lot of advantages, too." (Continued)