Bowyer's Darlington scheme to honor Martin

Clint Bowyer will honor one of the most successful drivers in Xfinity Series history during the Bojangles' Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on September 3.

Revealed Tuesday at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Bowyer's No. 14 Stewart-Haas Ford will honor Mark Martin with its throwback paint scheme. It will be with the same colors, design and same sponsor, Carolina Ford Dealers, that adorned Martin's car as he drove to 43 Xfinity Series for Bill Davis between 1988 and 1991.

"If you want to associate yourself with a winner and all that's good about our sport and its history, then you aren't going to do any better than Mark Martin," Bowyer said. "I'm proud to say I got to race with and against Mark in my career, and it's an honor to have him join us at Darlington in September.

"When the folks at SHR and Carolina Ford Dealers came up with this idea, I was pretty pumped up for it. Then I saw the paint scheme and I knew it was going to be one of the best in Darlington."

With a total of 49 Xfinity Series wins, Martin is second on the all-time wins list. He also earned 40 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victories and finished second in the championship five times. Additionally, Martin has five IROC Series championships and seven Camping World Truck Series wins.

Martin was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2017.

"Carolina Ford Dealers won in the state of South Carolina almost 30 years ago, so I think they're probably due for another win in South Carolina this September with Clint," Martin said. "Seriously, this is a really cool deal and brings back a lot of memories. This was a good time and I hope the race fans enjoy it as much as I will seeing it out on the track.

"Darlington is one of my favorite places on earth and I'm not going to miss this one."