LONG POND, Pa. (July 23, 2006) -- With its long straightaway of 3,740 feet, Pocono Raceway has had a history of chewing up brakes in the Nextel Cup events held twice a year at the 2.5-mile tri-oval. And the brake issue was the main culprit for Sterling Marlin and his No. 14 Ginn Clubs & Resorts Chevrolet in Sunday's Pennsylvania 500 Nextel Cup race.

Marlin, who started 35th, was running in the low 20s when he first encountered brake problems approximately 40 laps into the 200-lap, 500-mile event.

"We were losing the brakes and it was difficult to charge through the corners," said Marlin, who was credited with a 30th-place finish. "The car was pretty good at the start and I felt it was going to be a good day. We were passing cars, but when the brake problem hit, that pretty much halted our move to the front. When you go into turn one you really have to get on the brakes hard."

Marlin, who showed poise and savvy driving a car with brake problems, took another setback in the second half of the race when his Ginn Clubs & Resorts Chevy got awfully free, which caused the team to go a lap down.

"It was like a double whammy," said Marlin. "I'm not sure why the car got so free for that one green-flag run - maybe it was the tires. It's hard to say and we were faced with a steep uphill battle."

At one point of the race, Marlin's crew bled the brakes which temporarily helped the problem.

"Bleeding the brakes helped, but the problem persisted," offered Marlin. "The two races this year at Pocono were awfully frustrating. In the June race here we had an engine let go 18 laps into the race. I think it's time to take a break and regroup for Indy."

Marlin was referring to the Nextel Cup Series having next weekend off before the Aug. 6 Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.