A 50-year-old testament to the power of driver fitness

The cigarette lighter in David Pearson's car worked for a reason, and legend has it that rivals knew they were in trouble when they pulled alongside and saw the Silver Fox puffing away. Dick Trickle famously had a hole drilled into his helmet so he could smoke under caution. Curtis Turner flicked ashes out the window under green. Jimmy Spencer never looked right without the chewed end of an unlit Dunhill and Punch cigar clamped between his teeth. For decades everyone got rich off tobacco money, and cartons of Winstons were piled high for the taking.

Carl Edwards opened eyes with his revealing "ESPN the Magazine" cover.

Those days are gone. Big tobacco has been rooted out of the sport. Any drivers who smoke today do so clandestinely, well aware that it's poor public relations to be caught taking a drag on camera. And Saturday night, 50-year-old Mark Martin showed the power of fitness and conditioning by kicking everyone's butts at Phoenix International Raceway.

Enough of the old canard that claims race car drivers don't have to be in shape. It's being disproved a little more every day. The two top contenders for the Sprint Cup title last year were arguably the two fittest full-time drivers in the garage area, given that Carl Edwards has a physique made for magazine covers and Jimmie Johnson can run rings around the competition inside the car or out. The current points leader, Jeff Gordon, owes part of his renaissance to a stretching and workout routine that's helped alleviate the problems of an aching back. And then there's Martin, only the fourth driver 50 or older to win on NASCAR's premier circuit, who adheres to a strict workout routine, closely monitors his diet, and is a living testament to what a few more bench presses and a few less French fries can do.

"He might be 50, but he's got the body and the mental attitude of a 35-year-old," car owner Rick Hendrick said. "There are guys in their 30s who aren't in the shape he's in, and not as dedicated and committed to the sport as he is." (Continued)