"I threw my trophies in the dumpster”: When Mark Martin made his feelings known about his ‘extremely little’ finances before NASCAR changed his fate

Mark Martin retired as one of NASCAR's most dominant drivers. Even though the Arkansas native couldn't clinch a Cup Series championship, he stood the runner-up five times. Through his 31 years in the high-octane sport, Martin raked in 40 Cup wins, 49 Xfinity victories, and seven Truck Series wins.

Today, the NASCAR Hall of Famer boasts a net worth of $70 million (via Celebrity Net Worth), thanks to being among the most sought-after drivers. However, things were extremely different when Martin was not a NASCAR driver. He wasn't poor but he wasn't rich enough to live in a big house. He dwelled in apartments with his wife Arlene Martin, whom he married in 1984.

But Martin's fate changed after signing with Roush Racing in 1988. He collected 35 wins with the team including four runner-up Cup Series standings, becoming among the most sought-after drivers. His rising fame became lucrative for sponsors to back his ride which incentivized Jack Roush to continue his partnership with Martin.

Today, the legendary driver has a museum in Arkansas named after him, which has plenty of memorabilia.

During his final Cup Series season in 2013, in a conversation with Jeff Gluck, Mark Martin was asked whether he had any saved memories such as a fire suit, helmet, etc. Martin said they are in his museum but also recalled his struggling days when he had to save pennies to move up the ranks in NASCAR.

"I've got extremely little prior to NASCAR – I didn't have any place to put the stuff, and I needed every dollar to reinvest toward moving up through the ranks and all. So I don't have a lot of that, but I do have a lot since I started NASCAR racing. I've got quite a few cars and lots of uniforms," Martin said via USA Today.

Mark Martin revealed that he had to switch apartments seven times in five years after he married Arlene. And since he didn't have much space, he threw his pre-NASCAR trophies in a dumpster.

"I threw my trophies in the dumpster. All of them. I got married and we moved seven times in the first five years. I'm going to guess by the third or fourth move, I threw them all in the dumpster because they were already broken and beat up – and where was I supposed to put them? We were living in apartments, you know?"

Martin drove his penultimate Cup Series race for Stewart-Haas Racing in 2013 at the Homestead Miami Speedway and finished 19th.

When Mark Martin recalled his unjust compensation by Jack Roush

1989 was quite a dominant season for Mark Martin. Even though he claimed a solitary win from the 29-race slate, he collected six poles, 14 top-5s, 18 top-10s, and led 480 laps. Comparing it to his teammate Brett Bodine, whose stats exhibited no wins, no pole position, a solitary top-5, six top-10s, and merely two laps led, the former was way ahead. Martin ended the season in third while Bodine was down in 19th.

However, Martin revealed Bodine was getting more money in the paycheck. While the former's salary was capped at $225,000 a year, the latter had a higher compensation and churned more dollars through his 50% incentive provision.

That being said, during a conversation with Dale Earnhardt Jr., earlier this year, Martin revisited his paycheck story, claiming that Mr. Roush kept him down.

"In 1989, I won six poles, one race, run third in the points, and run second about five times. And my entire paycheck for the year was $225,000. Brett Bodine was getting a $250,000 salary plus 50%. They kept me down," Mark Martin said via Dirty Mo Media.

It's worth mentioning that Mark Martin claimed five International Race of Champions (IROC) titles while still running a full-time entry at Roush Racing.