2000 Brickyard 400

Mark, well-known for his consistent performances in the Winston Cup series, has had two consecutive uncharacteristically bad weekends.

Mark avoids a wrecked Mayfield

Mark blew an engine at the July 23 Pocono race and finished 43rd. Saturday, Mark was caught up in an accident with Mike Skinner, Rick Mast and Jeff Gordon on Lap 16 of the 160-lap Brickyard 400 and once again finished 43rd. Mark slipped a spot to 10th in the series points race as a result.

"Michael Waltrip was having trouble getting through the corners and I was just trying to be real careful," Mark said. "I got on the inside of him and (Mike) Skinner was trying to help me draft by him when we had to check up for the corner.

"I had to check up early because of Michael being on the outside, I was just trying to be careful, and Skinner got in the back of me. It was an accident."

Mark's No. 6 Valvoline Ford smacked the wall in Turn 1 on lap 16, ending his afternoon at Indianapolis.

Although 32 check marks grace in the win column on Mark Mark's resume, the boxes labeled "Daytona 500," "Coca-Cola 600" and "Brickyard 400" are blank.

This is not good. This means he has never won a "biggie," as Dale Earnhardt calls them.

Ironically, it was a biggie that prevented any chance of ending that streak in Saturday's seventh annual Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Mark was running in 15th position on lap 16 when he dove to the bottom of track to pass Michael Waltrip, with Mike Skinner in tow. Upon his pass, he hit the brake a bit harder than Skinner anticipated. The result wasn't pretty.

Unable to slow down enough to avoid Mark, Skinner hit him the rear, sending him spinning up the track backward into the Turn 1 wall. The No. 6 Valvoline Ford suffered inoperable damage, effectively ending Mark's day in 43rd position for the second consecutive race.

"I'm 100 percent sure that was an accident. Accidents happen," Mark said.

Accidentally, the second half of NASCAR 2000 has been rather supbar for Mark. During the first half of the season, his average finish was 7.3. That included a victory at Martinsville, which he admittedly stumbled into. During the second half, his average finish is 22.1. Do the math.

In the wake of his struggles, Martin is on a free fall in the championship points race. He led the points following the DieHard 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, the ninth race of the year. He now ranks 10th, 216 points out of the top-5. He hasn't finished outside the top-5 since 1992.

Still, the mighty might pilot was optimistic following a disappointing situation Saturday.

"That's the way it is," Mark said. "At most tracks the guy on the inside has got to kind of tip-toe, so I give it a little tip-toe and I'm sure it was Skinner behind me. He was trying to help me by (Waltrip) and that's the way things happen sometimes. That was the last thing in the world Mike would have wanted to do. It was an accident."

And boy was it a biggie.


Congratulations, Bobby Labonte, for the win at the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis, Ia.