"Ryan is a very talented driver and will be a future champion in this sport," says Wallace, who has a good relationship with Newman. "He did a great job and his team made some gutsy calls. Meanwhile, I just couldn't get to the line."
A similar situation developed at Roush Racing, where veteran Martin went winless while 31-year-old teammate Matt Kenseth coasted to the Winston Cup title.
At Ganassi Racing, Jamie McMurray, then 26, won the second Winston Cup race that he ran in 2002. Contrast that start to Marlin's: Sterling ran 278 Cup races over a span of 17 years before getting his first victory.
Is the new generation of racers more talented than their predecessors?
"No, I don't think so," Marlin says. "I don't want to take anything away from the young guys because they are all good drivers with a lot of ability. But are they more talented than the guys my age were when we came into the sport? No. The difference is that back then you had to spend a lot of years working your way up to a good ride; nowadays young guys step right into great rides with winning teams. When we were their age, a lot of us were racing junk. Today they get the big breaks earlier. That's the difference."
"It all started with Jeff Gordon," says Martin. "Jeff came in, got with a good team right away, and began winning races. So now every team owner is looking for the next Jeff Gordon-the hot, good-looking young driver they can mold into the next superstar. Gordon opened the door for them."
Martin, who spent years fighting his way up through the lower ranks before finally landing a top-flight Winston Cup ride with Roush, insists he does not resent the overnight success of his young teammate, Kenseth, who considers Martin a close friend and mentor.
"I'm thrilled for Matt and proud of him," Martin says. "He worked hard to put himself in the right position to take advantage of his chance when it came along. He is very talented and he deserves all the success he's enjoying."
Martin, meanwhile, refuses to allow the losing to gnaw at him. "I go out and run every lap of every race as hard as I can," he says. "I give it my very best. If I don't win . . . well, I can lie down and sleep at night knowing I've done my best. I think that's all anybody can ask."
And, like Wallace, he adamantly insists he still has what it takes to win. "I know in my heart that I'm capable of winning races," Martin says. "There is no self-doubt. Not a bit. I'm not out there just taking up space on the track, I'm out there to win. I know I can still do it."
A Tough CallNASCAR is unique among professional sports when it comes to aging athletes and how to deal with their decline. In racing there is no coach or manager to tap a driver on the shoulder and tell him it's time to go.
In fact, in NASCAR, an older driver's established fan base and his celebrity status make him a strong drawing card and a hot commodity for sponsors, even after the victories begin to vanish. Bill Elliott was mired in a seven-year slump at one point in his career, yet fans continued to vote him Most Popular Driver. Even when the winning stopped, the cheering continued.
Elliott, 49, announced his semi-retirement at the end of last season. The driver who became known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville during his glory days enjoyed a bounce-back last year, but still decided to run only a few select races this season. Rather than walk away entirely, Elliott is backing away slowly.
"It's a decision that everybody has to make at some point," says Elliott of his cutback. "I thought it over and decided that this was the best thing for me at this time."
Wallace says he won't follow Elliott's example of a gradual phase-out. He plans to quit "cold turkey" but will announce it a year ahead.