Four months after undergoing a third brain surgery in his battle with Parkinson’s Disease, former NASCAR Cup star Sterling Marlin’s return to racing was postponed last weekend due to mechanical issues with his car.
According to The Tennessean newspaper, Marlin, 62, was slated to compete in a pro late model race at his home track, Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville. However, issues with his No. 14 race car’s clutch prompted Marlin to withdraw from the event.
The two-time Daytona 500 champion took to social media to tell his fans what happened, as well as promising to be back “soon”
With us having mechanical problems all week. Clutch issue today so no practice. And a new car. Didn’t want the actual race to be my first time on track in this car. Soon. 👊🏼
— Sterling Marlin (@SMR_114) July 14, 2019
The news was disappointing for Marlin and his team, particularly since earlier Saturday he tweeted a photo of his race car to Dale Earnhardt Jr. as Marlin prepared for that evening’s event.
Nope @DaleJr, goin’ racing @FGSpeedway! I’m officially back with the 1️⃣4️⃣ tonight. 🏁 #MyTrackMyRoots https://t.co/nvSaIBUQPR pic.twitter.com/NTU4HgWH8G
— Sterling Marlin (@SMR_114) July 13, 2019
According to The Tennessean, Marlin “needs two more victories to become the winningest driver at the Fairgrounds.”
Also, according to the Fairgrounds’ web site, the next race there is August 10.