By Steve Post
In the waning laps of October’s Bank of America 500, Jamie McMurray had a lot of thoughts going through his head as he counted down to what would be his sixth-career victory, and third of the season.
“Before the race, I was listening to a sermon on a Christian radio station,” said
McMurray. “The preacher was talking about how we keep our faith to ourselves and that we really need to share it with others.
“I thought about it the last eight or ten laps; that if I win this race I am going to explain to people my feelings and why I felt that way.”
McMurray was referencing his emotional breakdown after winning the Daytona 500 in February on national television, and he chose Saturday’s nationally-televised victory lane to explain his emotions.
“I wanted people to understand that sometimes you see people’s emotions on TV,” continued McMurray. “After the season (2009) that I had, or the last four years I had, I found the power of prayer. And, that’s something that I really believe in.
“And, when I got to victory lane in Daytona, that’s what I was thinking about. I was crying, obviously because I was happy, but also because you feel like a prayer has been answered.”
After starting his career, with one very early win also at Charlotte, McMurray was hired by Jack Roush in 2006 to wheel his Fords in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The year before, Roush had five cars in the 10-car “Chase” field and was considered one of the premier teams in the garage.
McMurray put four years in at Roush with somewhat lackluster results – 2 wins but a best finish of 16th in points to show for the season-long efforts. Last year, with uncertainty surrounding him, he was re-hired by Chip Ganassi (where he started) for the Bass Pro Shops ride for Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates.
While failing to make the Chase this season, it’s been an amazing year with the Charlotte win on Saturday, a win at Indianapolis in the Brickyard 400 and that coveted Daytona 500 trophy in his first race back with the team.
“That’s a very selfish thing to ask for,” continued McMurray. “Certainly it’s not the first thing that I pray about every day. But, everyone wants to be successful and you want to do well in life. So, when you feel like that’s been answered, it’s emotional.
“I think that’s important. I watch other professional athletes, you hear them get out and you hear them thank God and talk about the power of prayer. I just think that that’s important for people to understand and understand why my feelings were the way they were.”