Mark Martin Race Summary: No. 55 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota driver Mark Martin led 60 laps, but finished 24th in Sunday’s 400-mile NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Kansas Speedway. Martin started second and looked like one of the fastest cars on the track, but luck was his biggest nemesis Sunday. Crew Chief Rodney Childers’ strategy put Martin in the lead for more than 50 laps with one pit stop left for the field. Martin came on pit road as the leader for what could have been his final stop when the caution flew seconds later, putting him a lap down. Utilizing the Aaron’s free pass, Martin returned to the lead lap in 22nd position. Soon after the restart, the No. 55 engine soured, losing a cylinder leaving the team with a less than representative 24th-place finish. Brian Vickers drives the No. 55 MyClassicGarage.com Toyota Sunday at Martinsville Speedway. Martin returns to action on Nov. 4 at Texas Motor Speedway and will drive the No. 55 in the remaining 2012 races.
- Started second and finished 24th
- Led 60 laps. Only race winner Kenseth and Aric Almirola led more laps.
- Cautions seconds after Martin’s pit stops twice dropped him to the rear of the field.
- Late race engine issues kept him from challenging in the final 40 laps.
- Martin has led 12,779 laps in his career.
MARTIN: “That’s disappointing, but it was a heck of a run today. We couldn’t buy a break. Rodney had the right strategy today, but the caution fell every time we made a pit stop. Our Toyota was awesome today. We’ll get them in Texas.”
