Former NASCAR Driver Sterling Marlin’s Interview Revealed Just How Much Parkinson’s Disease Has Affected Him
William Smith
Published May 15, 2026
Former NASCAR Driver Sterling Marlin’s Interview Revealed Just How Much Parkinson’s Disease Has Affected Him
Sterling retired from full-time racing in 2009 and later revealed he had been diagnosed with Parkinsonism.
June 7, 2026
This article was last updated by Manoj Gadtaula on June 3, 2026
American former professional stock car racing driver Sterling Marlin has had Parkinson’s disease since 2012.
Marlin is a retired NASCAR driver known for winning the Daytona 500 in 1994 and 1995, which made him one of the few drivers to win the event back-to-back.
Born on June 30, 1957, in Columbia, Tennessee, he followed in the footsteps of his father, Clifton “Coo Coo” Marlin.
He began in the late 1970s and won the Rookie of the Year award in 1983. His first Cup Series victory came at the 1994 Daytona 500 after 279 starts.
Marlin earned 10 Cup Series wins, 216 top-ten finishes, and 11 poles in 748 starts.
He retired from full-time racing in 2009 and later revealed he had been diagnosed with Parkinsonism.
In 2026, he was honored as one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers.
Sterling Marlin Struggled To Speak In The Interview Due To Parkinson’s Disease
Recently, retired NASCAR driver Sterling Marlin sat down for an interview with journalist Larry Woody and LW Wright.
But fans noticed that Sterling was to as his voice became shaky, and his frame was noticeably thinner, which was a painful sign of Parkinson’s disease.
The clips in which Sterling struggled to speak were spread across Instagram and YouTube.
Despite struggling to talk, Sterling was seen cracking jokes and sharing stories.
The NASCAR community poured their love and support, how Sterling means to them. One user wrote,
“Parkinson’s a merciless disease. It really hurts to see him like this, and also hope they get him into the HOF while he’s still around.”
Another user wrote,
It’s a shame we have to watch some of our hero’s grow up and get sick. While thankful for watching him race I’ll choose to always remember him during those times and wish him the best during this time.”
Some users got emotional too, with one saying,
“When I saw him on the Dale Jr Download it made me tear up. Dale did an amazing job leading the interview and Sterling was giving all he possibly could to answer as many questions as he could. Sterling, we love you brother.”
Marlin has had Parkinson’s since his diagnosis in 2012. He said that symptoms first started after he suffered a laceration to the knuckle on the middle finger of his right hand.
The injury, he said, included nerve . But rather than go to the doctor, he Super-Glued it closed.
He went through several surgeries, including a four-stage deep brain stimulation procedure that delivers electric pulses to brain cells to slow or reduce some of the disease’s progression.
However, Marlin suffered serious side effects, including excess fluid on the brain that required another procedure.
Instead of worrying about tires and fuel mileage and car setups, he spent much of the first half of the year with his surgeries and several follow-up exams.
In Case You Didn’t Know
- Sterling is married to Paula and has a daughter, Sutherlin, a son, Steadman, a former NASCAR Xfinity Series driver, and a grandson, Stirlin, who races for Sterling in Sterling’s No. 114 Super Late Model.
- Marlin moved over to the No.1 Bull’s Eye Barbecue Sauce-sponsored car owned by Hoss Ellington in 1986.
- He signed to drive the No. 22 Maxwell House-sponsored Ford Thunderbird for Junior Johnson in 1991.
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