Martin: Win validates full-time return

The 50-year-old broke a 97-race winless streak on Saturday night at Phoenix, which dated back to 2005. This year Martin returned to race full-time after running a part-time schedule during the past two seasons, first for Ginn Racing and then for Dale Earnhardt Inc.

Martin says that even if he was sure that returning full-time was right for him, he still needed to prove that he deserved that opportunity with Hendrick Motorsports. His Phoenix win, he says, has gone some way to doing that.

"You know, I do it for the passion of what I have, and I don't have anything else with that kind of passion," said Martin. "I haven't found anything to fill that void and drive me like racing and all those things.

"But there is a little voice in the back of my head, you know, asking if, are you sure you're worthy of this opportunity. That's part of the reason I've been successful. If you'll check with successful people, they are insanely driven.

"I know that they thought so. I know that Jeff [Gordon] did and I know that Rick [Hendrick] did. I've still got to produce, this is not over. I've got to keep on, I can't just go out and start riding around now."

Martin feels proud to have been subject of so many gestures of respect by his rivals after his win at Phoenix, something he says he values even more than the trophy and the victory itself.

His current and former team-mates as well as his former boss Jack Roush were among many who walked to victory lane to salute him following the race.

"It's really special. It's even more special than the trophy," he said. "You know, you can't... that's just respect, you earn, for sure. You just can't get it any other way. You've got to give it to get it, I also believe that."

Next weekend, Martin will compete for the first time in the last three years at Talladega, as he didn't race at the restrictor-plate track while running a limited schedule.