Revived Martin joins stout Hendrick team

Running a partial schedule the past two years, Mark Martin was able to rekindle his passion for racing and ponder the championship that has eluded him his entire career.

Presented with an opportunity to make one last run at a title with storied Hendrick Motorsports – a full-time 36-race commitment – Martin told his wife he couldn’t risk passing it up and regretting it the rest of his life.

Martin announced a two-year deal Friday to replace Casey Mears in Hendrick’s No. 5 Chevrolet. Next season will be a full schedule, and he’ll scale back down to a split ride in 2010. Rick Hendrick said the team could use either Brad Keselowski or Landon Cassill, who both drive in the Nationwide Series.

But in stepping into Hendrick’s elite program – the program has won 11 championships in NASCAR’s top three divisions since 1984 – Martin gets a bona fide chance to win the title that has escaped him the past 26 years.

Sprint Cup

Although Dale Earnhardt Inc. might not be a championship contender, it showed it still can be a force at Daytona International Speedway at Daytona Beach, Fla.

DEI swept the front row in qualifying for tonight’s Coke Zero 400 and ended up with three drivers in the top eight positions.

Paul Menard won the pole when he covered the 21/2-mile superspeedway with a fast lap of 185.916 mph, just ahead of teammate Mark Martin. Rookie Regan Smith was eighth.

“We did our homework,” Menard said. “We’ve made horsepower gains.”

Hendrick Motorsports driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. qualified third, followed by Joe Nemechek and Johnny Sauter. Series points leader Kyle Busch was ninth.

Nationwide Series

Denny Hamlin held off teammate Kyle Busch to win at Daytona International Speedway and extend Joe Gibbs Racing’s dominance in the series.

Hamlin had a comfortable lead over Busch as they headed toward the white flag, but rookie Colin Braun spun to bring out just the third caution of the race.

NASCAR reset the laps to create a two-lap sprint to the finish. Hamlin got a great jump on the restart and Busch couldn’t challenge him as Hamlin drove to his third Nationwide Series win of the year.

Formula One

Points leader Felipe Massa spun off the track and hit a wall during practice for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, England, but only after setting the fastest time in his Ferrari.

The Brazilian, who leads the standings by two points, climbed out of his car a few minutes after the crash and did not appear to be hurt.