The Hendrick Motorsports team in the 2009 Cup Series was legendary with Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin, and Dale Earnhardt Jr manning the cars. Few teams in history have boasted such a strong garage, and fewer have lived up to the potential.
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Martin was the final piece of the puzzle that owner Rick Hendrick put together in creating this lineup. How Rick managed it is as interesting a story as the action that unfurled that year on the track.
After quitting Roush Racing in 2006, Martin had decided to step back from full-time racing. He was pushing 50 at the time and knew that he couldn’t compete at the level he once did.
Martin drove part-time schedules in 2007 and 2008, limiting himself to a maximum of 24 races per season. However, Hendrick desperately wanted him to race the No. 5 car. The first time he called Martin, he kept beating around the bush with unrelated questions until the driver forced things out.
Martin recalled the conversation with Hendrick in an interview on Kenny Wallace’s YouTube channel. “Rick and I weren’t buddies. We didn’t talk much,” he began, detailing how the conversation started.
“He [Rick] calls me up and starts asking me how many races I am running and what’s the deal with the army. The army was a sponsor. He kept asking me all these questions, and finally, I went, ‘What is it, Rick?'” added Martin, who was not keen about Hendrick’s proposal to race full-time.
Martin rejected the request the first time. But Hendrick did not let him off easily. He called a second time, only for Martin to say no again. But then, the NASCAR legend started having second thoughts, too.
In 2008, Martin came extremely close to winning races and failed to do so. This made him want to taste blood again.
“I couldn’t do it unless [wife] Arlene agreed to it because, you know, I made a commitment to her. So, I don’t know. I laid something out there that Arlene agreed with, and I agreed with it, and Rick didn’t negotiate. He just took it,” recalled Martin.
NASCAR fans will thank the gods that the three of them reached a consensus. Martin went on to win five races in the 2009 season and finished second on the points table, behind his teammate, Johnson. The season remains one of Martin’s best and increased his total win count to a staggering 40.
