Johnny Benson

Mark Martin began competing in Cup races at Michigan International Speedway in 1982, faring very well at the track over the years, and so on Sunday he’s my pick to win the Sprint Cup Series 400-miler there.

Working in Martin’s favor
I learned a tremendous amount about how to run MIS from Martin. He’s got a knack for doing well at MIS. There are certain places on the track that seem to always be fast, but it is very challenging and very difficult to run a car through these spots well. But Martin, probably better than most if not all other drivers, does that at MIS.

Down on the bottom at MIS, the white line doesn’t have much banking, but it is definitely the shortest way around the track, and Martin, along with Tony Stewart, are excellent at putting the car where it needs to be to run well down on the bottom.

Martin has won twice this year, and last week at Pocono, he was running in the top 10 for most of the event. But he was forced to pit for fuel late in the race, and that cost him as he came home 19th, and slipped to 13th in the standings, one spot out of the Chase for the Championship. Had fuel mileage not worked against Martin, he had a car good enough for a top-five finish.

This is Martin’s first season with Henderick Motorsports, and being in top-notch equipment should only increase his chances at getting to Victory Lane. Martin is moving in a great direction, and he and crew chief Alan Gustafson are working hard on getting the No. 5 Chevrolet into the Chase.

This will be Martin’s 47th Cup start at MIS, where he has four wins, one pole, 16 top-fives, and 28 top-10s. His average start is 11.4, and his average finish is 13.1. He’s led for 9.5 percent of the laps he has run.

Other drivers to watch
Stewart is coming off his first win of the season last week at Pocono. It was his first trip to Victory Lane as an owner/driver. Stewart and his team are not overachieving by any means even though they are surprising a lot of people. What’s certainly helped is Stewart is getting his engines and chassis from Henderick Motorsports.

Stewart is on top in the standings, 71 points ahead of Jeff Gordon. He’ll be seeking to expand that lead at MIS where in 20 Cup starts, he has a win, nine top-fives, and 13 top-10s. His average start is 22.4, and his average finish is 12.5. He’s led for 4.2 percent of the laps he has run.

Carl Edwards runs really well at MIS, the site of his first Cup race in 2004. He won last August at MIS, and also got to Victory Lane there in this event in 2007. His MIS resume jumps out at you. In addition to the pair of wins, he has five top-fives, and eight top-10s in nine Cup starts. His average start is 18.3, but he has a shining average finish of 6.6, and has led for an impressive 13.4 percent of the laps he has run.

Kyle Busch has been hit and miss lately. That’s a little hard to understand considering how strong a season he had last year up until the Chase. Although he has had his struggles at MIS, he did finish second in last August’s event, and this is a venue he can excel at. In his eight MIS Cup starts, Busch has a pole, one top-five, and three top-10s. His average start is 8.5, and his average finish is 17.4. He’s led for 5.1 percent of the laps he has run.

Jimmie Johnson and his crew chief, Chad Knaus, enjoy racing at MIS, but they haven’t won there, and that’s something Johnson admits is one of their goals. They’ve run some good races at MIS, but just don’t have the finishes to show for it. The three-time defending Cup champion will be making his 15th Cup start at MIS, where he has a pole, two top-fives, and six top-10s. His average start is 9.1, and his average finish is 14.4. He’s led for 8.2 percent of the laps he has run.

My dark horse is Sam Hornish Jr., who will be running just his third Cup race at MIS. The Penske Racing cars usually run well at MIS.

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