NASCAR: The Five Greatest Drivers To Never Win The Daytona 500

Mark Martin

Mark Martin was so close to so many things in his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career. He was the runner up in the championship standings a record four times but never hoisted the Cup trophy. Another feat he never achieved was the elusive Daytona 500 victory. Mark was more of a road racer and a short track slinger than he ever was a superspeedway racer, having won just twice on the restrictor-plate tracks, both times at Talladega.

Mark has certainly had his fair share of shots at reaching Victory Lane at Daytona, having entered the event 30 times. He has earned a top-five finish in the Great American Race six times, but his best chances of winning have come in a few of his more recent attempts in the event.

In 2007, Mark Martin was the front runner in the waning laps, and was the sentimental favorite after Tony Stewart’s dominant run had ended short on a lap 152 crash. Martin took the lead on lap 176 in the No. 01 Army Chevrolet and held onto it for another 26 laps as the cars drove under the white flag. Kevin Harvick seemingly came out of nowhere and pulled aside Martin, leading to a finish for the ages:

Unfortunately, as you saw Mark came up short in the closest finish in the history of the Great American Race, breaking the hearts of Martin and fans across the nation. Another close chance for Martin was in his final running of the event, in 2013, when he came up finishing third in the No. 55 Toyota. He and Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a huge run coming down the backstretch but were unable to catch and pass Jimmie Johnson before the checkered flag.

Mark Martin has come so close in his career many times, which may be forever what he is remembered for, as he was the driver with the most wins to have not won the Daytona 500 or a Cup Series title.

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