Sports: Martin's BGN career is coming to an end

Martin's BGN career is coming to an end

By KEVIN KELLY

Five years ago, the demands on his time still were manageable.

That's not the case anymore for Mark Martin.

In an effort to relieve some of the pressures on a top driver, the 41-year-old Martin will make his final Busch Grand National start Saturday in the Miami 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

"If you would've asked me five years ago, I would have said I'm going to drive these things until I'm 55," said Martin, who will continue to drive the No. 6 Ford in the Winston Cup series. "Every time (Dick) Trickle ran good I stood up and cheered, "Yeah, that adds five more years to the end of my career.' That's what I said five years ago, so everybody changes their minds.

"Five years ago I had every intention of driving these things into my mid 50s, but racing has grown a lot in the last five years and these things are a lot more demanding and they're a lot more competitive."

His performance in BGN competition has been nearly impeccable -- a record 45 wins, 91 top-five finishes and 27 poles (one from the record) in 199 starts.

"This is a real competitive business and it makes me feel good when we can be successful on the racetrack," Martin said. "I'm going to miss that about Busch racing. But I just don't have time to do it anymore. I will be relieved when I get Homestead done with, but at the same time I will miss the success that I've had and the way it makes me feel. ... It's been a very important part of my career."

CHAMPIONSHIP MOOD: It appears nothing has changed at Joe Gibbs Racing leading up to Sunday's Pennzoil 400, the 33rd of 34 Winston Cup races.

Bobby Labonte, who drives the No. 18 Pontiac, can clinch his first championship with a solid finish at the 1.5-mile track.

"People aren't looking ahead," said Greg Zipadelli, crew chief for Labonte's teammate and defending Pennzoil 400 winner, Tony Stewart. "The championship hasn't even been discussed. I think everybody is just focused on the last two races here."

Labonte, who finished second last year at Homestead, can clinch the title in any number of ways.

He could finish fifth or better, finish sixth if he leads a lap, finish seventh if he leads the most laps. He wins under any scenario that puts him 186 points ahead of the second-place driver in the standings. Labonte, who leads Dale Earnhardt by 218 points and Jeff Burton by 226, could finish 28th or better in the final two races and win the championship.

ENCORE PERFORMANCE: BGN and CART races were one thing. Playing host to an inaugural Winston Cup event attended by more than 70,000 fans last year was another for Homestead-Miami Speedway and its president, Curtis Gray.

"The total expectations of everyone that attends the event, from the media to the fans, everybody's expectations are a lot higher than any other event we put on here," Gray said.

Only minor changes have been made in preparation for the track's second Winston Cup event this weekend, most notably the main road leading to the speedway has been widened and fans are allowed to bring small coolers inside the track.

"I think we were prepared last year, but you always learn something," Gray said. PIT NOTES: NASCAR, on Monday, approved the Dodge Motorsports engine to be used next season. ... ESPN analysts Benny Parsons and Bill Weber will join NBC's broadcasting crew for the 2001 Winston Cup season.

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