NASCAR legend Mark Martin looks back on old picture with Dale Earnhardt Sr.

NASCAR is where friendships and rivalries coexist peacefully. One instance of the same is the bittersweet relationship between NASCAR vet Mark Martin and 7-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, the late Dale Earnhardt Sr.

Earnhardt Sr., also known as the 'intimidator,' and Mark Martin were contemporaries. The former was a formidable opponent on the racetrack. Everyone back then was aware of his offensive strategies and therefore, feared to pull up anywhere close to Earnhardt's No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevy. However, Mark Martin was not one of them.

Despite their on-track tussles, Martin truly regarded Dale Earnhardt Sr. as his friend. Earnhardt Sr. too, had a lot of respect for Martin. On that note, the 65-year-old Batesville native reminisced about the time when he won the IROC race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Dale Earnhardt Sr. won the championship.

The IROC at Indy was a counterpart to the crown jewel Brickyard 400. The race was run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway from 1998 to 2003.

Recalling the day from 24 years ago, Martin took to X (formerly Twitter), and said,

"This makes me happy and sad at the same time."

The following year, that is in 2001, Dale Earnhardt Sr. lost his life at the age of 49. He crashed coming off of turn 4 at Daytona International Speedway and received a fatal basilar skull ring fracture. Several drivers like Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin, and Tony Roper had lost their lives not long ago due to the same injury to the skull.

Mark Martin launched personal merchandise commemorating a legendary streak

Unlike Dale Earnhardt Sr., Mark Martin never won a NASCAR Cup Series championship in his career. However, Martin recorded 40 wins in the Cup Series. Furthermore, he flaunts the second-most wins (49) in what is known as the Xfinity Series today. Martin also has 5 IROC championships under his belt, which is more than any other driver.

However, a feat that Martin pulled off over August and September 1993 perhaps stands out from all his achievements in the world of NASCAR. He never lost a race from August 8th to September 10th that year.

Commemorating his race-winning streak, Martin announced the launch of a limited edition T-shirt on his X account. Martin captioned the post, saying,

"From August 8th to September 10th of 1993, Mark Martin won every NASCAR race he entered. This shirt commemorates that legendary win streak. The names and dates of the races are listed on the back with the Winston Cup Series races in yellow and the Busch Series races in blue."

Fans can grab this T-shirt exclusively at markmartinarchive.com. The price of the T-shirt starts at just $30 and can go up to $33, depending on the size.