I found it hard keeping a straight face, hearing Sterling Marlin say he'd only be back in a Nextel Cup car if the ride was "competitive," that it's "got to be a decent ride or nothing."Let's do a little simple math here.
Sterling Marlin is 50 years old, hasn't won a race since 2002 and has just 4 -- 4! -- top-5 finishes in that time. In a Cup career that began with a debut 31 years ago, the Tennessee native has just 10 wins.
It's not exactly a resume that will have the Gibbs, Hendricks or even the DEI/Ginn merger -- the same company that shut his team down -- knocking down his door. In fact, I think it would be safe for Marlin to make any fishing or vacationing plans he'd like over the next few months.
Marlin also said he'd be willing to hit a partial Busch Series schedule, 12-15 races a year, something in that ballpark. Given the youth movement from Cup teams everywhere, it's hard to imagine a good Busch ride is lurking right around the corner for a 50-year-old driver whose best years are behind him.
Given that 20-somethings winning races all over the country can't get NASCAR rides, how could a guy like Marlin?
Even accomplished Cup drivers comparable to Marlin -- like Ricky Craven, who is also ruling out retirement should the right opportunity present itself -- can't find competitive Cup seats. Does the name Ward Burton ring a bell? He's certainly one of Marlin's contemporaries struggling to find a good seat at either the Cup or Busch level.
There's always the Craftsman Truck Series, where NASCAR puts its aging stars out to pasture.
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