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Martin takes lead but don't make a big deal

Mark Martin took the Winston Cup points lead Sunday for the first time in more than two years.

No hoot.

No holler.

No fist pump.

Just a warning: "I'm not going to be any fun to cover, I promise, because I'm not going to say nothing until it's over," said Martin, 43-year-old driver of the No. 6 Ford. "Believe me, I won't talk about it. You guys are going to pull your hair out if I stay in this shape."

With a 16th-place finish in the rain-shortened New Hampshire 300, Martin ousted Sterling Marlin from the lead for the first time in 26 weeks. Atop the standings for the first time since April 2000, Martin leads Marlin by six points with nine races left.

Martin, a three-time runner-up in the 1990s, refuses to get worked up over the possibility of winning his first Winston Cup title. It's too risky, and it's not his style. "It doesn't mean much," Martin said. "There are nine (races) to go."

In addition to Marlin, Jimmie Johnson (minus-40), Tony Stewart (minus-59) and Jeff Gordon (minus-67) are within striking distance of Martin. Five more are within 227 points, with a 151-point swing possible each race.

And it's not like Martin charged into the lead with a top-five run. He might have, but with 50 laps left a flat tire sent Martin to the back of the field. Afterward, he didn't know whether to be happy or disappointed.

"We had a really fast race car," Martin said. "We had a flat, should have ruined it and almost walled it, but saved it. It would be a lot more exciting for me if we had run fifth or sixth like it looked like we would. Of course, I would be a lot more disappointed if I had hit the wall."

Sure, but how would we tell?

PLEA FOR HELP: Marlin, whose lead began slipping several weeks ago, petitioned NASCAR officials for an aerodynamic concession for Dodge teams after his 21st-place finish at New Hampshire. The series' other manufacturers -- Ford, Chevrolet and Pontiac -- have benefited from increased front downforce.

"We're doing the best we can with the rules we've got," said Marlin, who won two of the season's first five races but has finished no better than third in 22 races since. "Everybody has had rule changes but us. We've been hollering for a full kickout (on the front valence) and we haven't got it. ... They've done it for everyone else but the Dodges."

RARE RUN: Bobby Labonte, two years removed from the Winston Cup championship, was thrilled with a fourth-place finish at New Hampshire, his fourth top-five finish of the season and first since winning at Martinsville in April. He started a season-best third.

"It's really nice to be able to have a weekend like we had here," said Labonte, driver of the No. 18 Pontiac of Joe Gibbs Racing. "We were able to come in and qualify well and race well, which we have not done too much this season."

Labonte is 17th in the standings and has not been higher than 12th this season. But Labonte and longtime crew chief Jimmy Makar are determined to return to the elite.

"We have been turning the corner on our entire program lately, but we still have a long way to go to get back to the front," Labonte said.

STAY TUNED: Conditions at New Hampshire were better Sunday than in July, when the pavement in Turns 3 and 4 broke apart. But many drivers said the track was saved by rainy conditions that kept the temperature cool. "I think the track was only better because it was so overcast," Martin said. "It was going bad out there. ... If it would have been sunny, I think we would have had the same kind of mess on our hands." Owner Bob Bahre said the four turns will be repaved in time for July 2003.

LUCAS OIL NATIONALS: Doug Kalitta beat Kenny Bernstein for his first victory (Top Fuel) in more than a year Monday at the rain-delayed NHRA event in Mohnton, Pa. Tony Pedregon (Funny Car), Jim Yates (Pro Stock) and Angelle Savoie (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also were winners.

-- Information from other news organizations was used in this report.

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