Life is a Song68856

On June 20, 2007 at 9:09 a.m. when Ingrid Vandebosch gave birth to Ella Sofia Gordon, it put an end to the possibility of Mark Martin subbing for the new father Jeff Gordon.

That also put an end to the big what if about a possible split championship in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. Im talking about the drivers and owners championship.

It would have been a stretch, but lets go down the what if road for a little bit here.

First Mark Martin fills in for Jeff Gordon at Sonoma. Martin wins the race giving him and the #24 car 10 bonus points for the Chase for the Cup Championship. Plus that would put Martin back into the seat of a race car one of the races he was scheduled to sit out.

With Mark Martin not running a full schedule in 2007, it would have been inconceivable to picture him with a chance to make the Chase for the Cup. As of last weeks race he was 13th in the points, despite missing three races. He has an average finish of 10.2 in the 12 races he has raced.

If Mark Martin would make the Chase for the Cup, and win the championship by less than 10 points over Jeff Gordon, we would then have a split NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Championship. Mark Martin would win the drivers championship and Hendrick Motorsports would win the owners championship.

Why?

When the points are reset to start the Chase for the Cup, Mark Martin would have 10 more points than the #01 car (Ginn Racing) would have to start the Chase. Hendrick Motorsports (#24) would also have 10 more points than Jeff Gordon.

Now that would have been a big stretch.

But it was a real possibility that Jeff Gordon was going to miss a race, most likely at Sonoma. Mark Martin was going to fill in for him. The #24 car has been great, and Martin is a good road course driver (five-road course wins). So the thought of Martin winning in Gordons car is a real possibility.

You would think that with Mark Martin scheduled to sit out more races; he would not have a chance to make the Chase for the Cup, but he keeps hanging around the cut-off. A win would help the possibility of making the Chase even more likely of a scenario.

If Mark Martin would qualify for the Chase for the Cup; he has been consistent enough of a driver in the #01 car that he could win the championship. Ginn Racing is 5th in the owners points with Regan Smith filling for Martin on the races he sat out.

Alright then, I said it was a big what if situation. But it would have made a great story to follow. I could not imagine this situation would never come up again.

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