It is a pity that Mark Martin failed to register a Cup Series title win despite his stellar abilities behind the wheel. With over 800 starts in the competition, Martin enjoyed some memorable moments in his NASCAR career. However, there were instances where things drastically went south. One such incident came against the former NASCAR President. While it was one to forget, it surely made Martin concede with Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s recent comments.

With 40 Cup Series and 49 Xfinity Series wins, the Arkansas-born driver always entered a race with eyes for victory. While it is an approach that helped Martin more often than not, it returned to haunt him at Richmond Raceway. Unfortunately, the incident left the 2017 NASCAR Hall of Famer to regret his decision-making.

Mark Martin agrees with Dale Earnhardt Jr. about the current state of affairs in NASCAR

Plenty has happened in NASCAR ever since the controversial finish at Richmond on Sunday. While Austin Dillon registered his first victory of the 2024 campaign, his playoff ambitions took a massive hit on Wednesday. The Richard Childress Racing driver’s playoff eligibility was revoked despite his win, citing his detrimental actions.

Undoubtedly, NASCAR came under a lot of pressure to act, given how Dillon escaped any punishment after the race. While drivers and teams demanded strict action from the governing body, it felt that it was too late to make a statement. In his recent episode of his podcast ‘The Dale Jr. Download’, Dale Earnhardt Jr. along with Martin spoke candidly about NASCAR’s passive approach in recent times.

He said, “I believe that this was a missed opportunity for them. This was definitely more than enough. I think they definitely had an opportunity to define what is unacceptable…If they did miss an opportunity to define what is unacceptable live in the moment, more toothpaste is out of the tube. Now it is harder for them to demand higher expectations going forward.”

Dale Jr. then pointed out NASCAR misses the presence of an authoritarian figure like former NASCAR President Mike Helton. He said, “When these things would happen in the past, [former NASCAR president] Mike Helton would stand up in the next drivers meeting in the next week and say a few words. Now, he was convincing. He was a convincing dude. They don’t really have that guy anymore. I don’t know that there’s an authoritarian figure in the garage that the drivers, when he speaks to drivers they go, ‘Yes sir, you bet, you got it, man.’”

In line with these comments, Mark Martin not only agreed with Junior, but also revealed Mike Helton’s fury in the past. While speaking on the ‘Dale Jr. Download’ podcast, he narrated an incident from his racing days, which scares him to date. He first conceded with Jr’s comments and said what message NASCAR should be passing. Martin said, “We [NASCAR] ain’t gonna tolerate that. There’s a line between rubbing and even a bump and run and, and what went on, what happened Saturday night.”

Then, the 65-year-old explained his encounter with Mike Helton from the past. Once racing at Richmond, Martin was chasing desperately for the championship. At the time, he badly needed a caution when he decided to pull a piece of rubber padding loose and throw it out of his car’s window. Expectedly, Helton and NASCAR saw it and called Martin to the trailer after the race. While he accepted what he did in the truest form, what happened next was unthinkable.

Martin revealed how Helton reacted. he said, “I thought he was going to beat my a**. He scared me. He was so mad, and it scared me so bad. I was actually scared for my safety…So Junior’s right. These guys [current drivers] need to have more than the threat that we are gonna find you or we are gonna take your eligibility for the playoffs away or whatever. You need to have somebody you’re scared of. That’s worked.”

While Mark Martin indirectly criticized what Austin Dillon did at Richmond, he had mixed emotions when it came to Joey Logano’s penalty.

Mark Martin believes Joey Logano should have known better amid his angered reaction after the Richmond race

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It all started with Austin Dillon wrecking Joey Logano between Turns 3 and 4 at Richmond on Sunday. While Logano looked set for another win in the 2024 season, Dillon’s uncalled-for act ruined his day unexpectedly. While it is only understandable why the #22 driver lost his cool after the race, NASCAR ensured his actions didn’t go unpunished.

The ruling body imposed a $50,000 penalty for driving into pit row and revving up his engine in front of the RCR garage where Dillon’s wife and children were present. Unsurprisingly, his behavior was deemed dangerous and was therefore penalized. Speaking on the podcast, Mark Martin shared his point of view on the incident and the ruling.

He said, “I don’t think it’s about what happened with interviews. I’m frustrated. I didn’t like that at first, but I’ve gotten used to it, and I like it. I like the raw emotion right out of the race car, so I think we need to keep safety in mind.” While Martin said that, he felt the penalty was more than what was needed. He said, “But, you know, it’s pretty excessive. And so, thinking about having an excessive penalty for something like this, is it going to deter it in the future? You know, a fifty thousand dollar fine for what he did—he shouldn’t have done it; he should have known better.”

Additionally, Martin put himself in Joey’s head and explained the scenario. He said, “Joey should have known better, but if you were in his head, you knew that he had control of it and that he wasn’t going to run over somebody. But everybody else doesn’t know that, and if you go at that with an excessive penalty like what I think that was, it deters it.”

While it is debatable if Logano’s penalty was excessive or not, the message is clear from NASCAR that safety cannot be compromised. As Mark Martin said, the ruling body needs to be stricter and bolder with its approach and bring that fear back. Hopefully, someone from the governing body is taking note of these comments.