Get ready for an even better 2006

Sporting News, The, Dec 9, 2005 by Lee Spencer

Coming off a scintillating end to the season, there will be more pleasant surprises in the months ahead.

For starters, there are at least 15 driver changes in the Nextel Cup Series. Some retired, others moved to different teams or series, and we have not yet seen the end of recycling drivers.

Teams will invent ways to get around NASCAR's five-test limit by rotating rookie drivers out of research and development seats and/or by competing full time in the Busch Series.

The car of tomorrow will keep fabrication shops busy. The Dodge teams still will struggle to figure out the car of today.

How will 2006 shape up? Well, let's fast forward to the December 8, 2006, issue of the SPORTING NEWS for the annual NASCAR Awards.

Driver of the Year: Carl Edwards. With crew chief Bob Osborne calling the shots, Edwards posted double digits in the win column--the first time a driver has done that since Jeff Gordon won 13 races in 1998. There's a reason teammate Matt Kenseth referred to Edwards as "the natural." Edwards makes his success look effortless. But behind the scenes, the Cup sensation absorbed information like a sponge, learning everything he could from fellow competitors and Osborne, who started in the sport as an engineer. Edwards' delightful demeanor has endeared him to competitors and fans alike. There's no stopping the No. 99 express.

Owner of the Year: Jack Roush. For the second straight season, all five Roush teams qualified for the Chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup.

Roush also picked up a second Busch Series title.

Crew Chief of the Year: Osborne. Three years ago, the No. 99 Ford seemed destined for the junk heap. Since Osborne signed on, the wins just keep coming. Osborne was Roush's first attempt at putting an engineer on the pit box, and the results have been spot on.

Rookie of the Year: Denny Hamlin. When Hamlin scored two top 10s and his first pole by his sixth career start, pundits began to realize Joe Gibbs Racing finally had found a driver worthy of the No. 11 Chevrolet. But Hamlin, 26, didn't stop there. He exhibited excellent car control, which allowed him to score multiple poles and wins.

Breakout Driver of the Year: Jamie McMurray. All Mac needed was a change of scenery and a stable full of incredible cars. After a winless streak that spanned three seasons at Ganassi, McMurray had the breakthrough year everyone expected to occur in 2003. With Yates engines under the No. 26 car's hood, McMurray improved his qualifying prowess; he won the pole at both Pocono events. After a year with McMurray, any previous plans crew chief Jimmy Fennig had of retiring evaporated.

Dale Earnhardt Toughest Driver Award: Mark Martin. For the second consecutive year, Martin was overwhelmingly the top choice for this award. At 47, Martin proved he still had game. Being surrounded by such a youthful stable at Roush Racing energized the veteran for his 24th and final year on the Cup circuit. Look for Martin to steal the show in the Craftsman Truck Series in 2007.

INSIDE DISH

Penske Performance is moving its NASCAR, Indy Racing League and American LeMans Series programs under one roof in North Carolina, and Roger Penske has announced that Tim Cindric will oversee the entire operation. Since 1999, Cindric, 37, has been responsible for Penske Racing's IRL effort, Penske Cars Ltd., Racing Experience inc., Penske Technology Group and Penske Motorsports Inc. Cindric led Team Penske to two IRL titles and 25 victories, including three consecutive Indy 500 wins. Penske Racing South president Don Miller will retain his role; Penske Racing South general manager John Erickson will become G.M. of Penske Motorsports' ALMS Porsche program. > Testing for Daytona Speedweeks runs January 9-11 for odd-numbered finishing Nextel Cup teams and January 16-18 for even-numbered finishing teams. The Craftsman Truck Series will test on January 13-14. Testing will wrap up with the Busch Series January 20-22. > Since Ganassi Racing announced it would expand to four teams, it has been adding personnel--including former Roush car chief Jeff Vandermoss to become crew chief for David Stremme in the No. 40. Now with just three teams, that leaves current crew chief Steve Boyer as the odd man out. But with his talent, he could end up as the lead engineer for Ganassi's Cup programs. > After finishing in the top five in three of the final five races, Jeff Gordon appears poised to make a run for a fifth Cup title in 2006. After Gordon accepts the $1 million bonus at the NASCAR banquet this week in New York for finishing 11th in points, he will go to Paris to compete for Team USA in the 18th annual Race of Champions on December 3. > It was a challenging season for Robby Gordon mainly because he returned to a driver-owner role in the Cup Series. His decision to switch to DEI engines for the final two races offered promise of a brighter future. Gordon scored his best overall finishes of the season: eighth at Phoenix and 14th at Homestead.

Dale Earnhardt Inc. is expanding and reorganizing its current campus to 160,000 square feet. DEI will house the No. 8 team with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and crew chief Tony Eury Jr. in the same building with rookie Martin Truex and crew chief Kevin Manion. The No. 15 Cup team will be combined with the Busch program and used for research and development with Paul Menard driving. Earnhardt and Truex will split Busch Daytona driving duties, Earnhardt driving the season opener, Truex the July race.

speed reads

If NASCAR is going to drop the impound procedure for Cup races, then why not condense qualifying and racing into two-day weekends? The time teams sacrifice away from home isn't worth the sale of a handful of hot dogs and beers.

Expect Casey Mears to have a breakthrough in 2006. With Jamie McMurray gone, Mears is the senior driver at Ganassi Racing, and he and crew chief Jimmy Elledge will lead by example.

Jimmie Johnson seems to be the heir apparent to Mark Martin's bridesmaid role. For three consecutive years, J.J. has been in a prime spot to win it all, but his end game falls short under pressure.

Disaster averted-this time

Tropical Storm Gamma teased the Ford 400 in the days leading up to the final race of the season. Breathless forecasters (is there any other kind?) said rain from the storm would pelt Miami all day Sunday, and the storm itself would arrive Monday.

The storm broke up, and the weather for the race was wonderful. But weather--dangerous weather--is going to be an issue for the championship race every year.

Simply moving the race is not as easy as it sounds. Schedules are made far in advance, and NASCAR loves having its final race in a glamorous, warm-weather town. South Beach is a jillion miles from the race shops in Charlotte, but sponsors, teams, drivers and media enjoy being feted in such an area.