Martin excited to return to Dover for Sunday's 400-mile event

DOVER, Del. – On Sunday afternoon, Mark Martin will make his 50th NASCAR Sprint Cup appearance at Dover International Speedway. The No. 5 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet driver has earned numerous career and track records at the Delaware track during his three decade-long career.

The veteran driver has four wins at the one-mile concrete oval, which is the second–most victories for him at any track and is tied with his Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway record. From 1997-1999, Martin picked up a trio of wins at the concrete oval and started from the pole position in those first two wins.

“I absolutely loved Dover from the first time I was there,” Martin said, remembering his first trip to the Monster Mile 29 years ago. “It’s truly the only concrete racetrack I’ve ever loved. The first time I was there, I remember the track record was like 144 miles per hour. Now we’re nearly 20 miles per hour faster, which is just incredible. It’s an awesome, awesome racetrack and definitely on my list of favorite tracks we go to."

Along with Martins four wins at Dover, he also has earned 22 top-five finishes, the most ever recorded there and a career best, while his 30 top-10s also rank first. He also owns 26 lead-lap finishes, best among driver all-time at Dover.

“Dover has arguably been my best track on the NASCAR circuit,” Martin said. “The GoDaddy.com team has been bringing really good cars to the tracks each weekend. We were fast at Richmond (Va.) and got into that big wreck and still finished 14th. And our car at Darlington (S.C.) was capable of much more than a 19th-place finish, which we suffered due to a flat tire. So these guys, they’re working really hard. I’m anxious to get to Dover and get in this car. Hopefully we unload off the truck fast and just keep making it better from there.”

Sunday’s Cup event at the Monster Mile airs on FOX at 1 p.m. ET.