Martin revving up for his Hendrick debut, Chase '09

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- The dichotomy that's Mark Martin in 2008 has come to a glaring head this weekend at Kansas Speedway and with it, about as much of a prediction as the eminently low-key Martin is apt to make.

He said that chances were he'd get a first-hand look at what pressure from the media was like next season, when he thinks he'll be part of the 12-man Chase for the Sprint Cup field.

Because despite having a scintillating record in his most recent races in Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s No. 8 Chevrolet, Martin has found himself largely ignored; and amazingly enough, he doesn't appear to like it.

"Well, it's just how it's covered today," Martin said on Friday. "I obviously was in the Chase every year that they had it and I'm not really used to qualifying second or third and not having anybody ask me any questions -- or finishing in the top five two weeks in a row and not even being interviewed after the race.

"It seems different than the way I remembered it. But maybe next year will be different, you know? It's OK. It is what it is. I'm a fan, too [and] I'm watching the Chase, too."

Martin is passionate about his racing. It's why he's signed up for a full Sprint Cup season in 2009 with Hendrick Motorsports. It's why, at Kansas, he was bouncing back and forth between the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series garages, posting the 13th- and seventh-best times in two Saturday practices before he went over to start second in the Nationwide race.

But he's also totally cool with not having to talk too much about it.

That won't likely be the case next season, when he'll join two-time defending Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, four-time Cup champ Jeff Gordon and NASCAR's most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr.

But after qualifying second on Friday for Sunday's Camping World RV 400, the fourth time he's qualified second in his past seven races, Martin recalled the way it used to be -- when he was a Chase contender -- and even before that, when he scored 16 top-10 point finishes in 19 seasons with owner Jack Roush. (Continued)