Nextel Cup's class of 6 has skill and access to top equipment, resources.
By BRANT JAMES
Published February 11, 2004
DAYTONA BEACH - Brendan Gaughan's a betting man, weaned on the action in his father's Orleans Casino back home in Las Vegas.
He still wouldn't lay any cash on himself to win the Nextel Cup rookie of the year award though. At least not right now.
"Wait until I go to 10-to-1," he said, when told Vegas bookmakers had opened a line and Brian Vickers was the favorite.
For now, Gaughan said, the 20-year-old reigning Busch Series champion is where the smart money is, even though this year's six-deep crop of newcomers is arguably one of the best and most diverse in NASCAR history.
"He's the Busch champion," Gaughan said. "He's with a first-class organization (Hendrick Motorsports). Have any of us won a championship? No. Until we do, he's the one to beat."
There is no arguing that despite his youth, Vickers has the experience, resources and trophy. The youngest ever to win a Busch Series title, he took over for Joe Nemechek in the No. 25 Chevrolet late in the season and showed immediate promise in five Cup races. Though he finished no better than 13th (at Phoenix) he qualified in the Top 5 four times, twice losing poles to Ryan Newman, who led the series with 11.
Vickers, therefore, is perhaps best prepared to fulfill what has become an increasing expectation for rookies to win. Tony Stewart, a former Indy Racing League champion, helped cinch up the pressure when he won a record three races as a rookie in 1999. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth each won a race in 2000. Kevin Harvick won two races in 2001. Jimmie Johnson tied Stewart's record in 2002 but lost the rookie of the year race when Ryan Newman had 22 top-10s.
Vickers can look across the Hendrick Motorsports shop to see the source of more pressure.
"Jimmie was definitely one of the ones who raised the bar as far as the rookie status goes," he said, "and I have to try and live up to it."
Though 2003 rookie of the year Jamie McMurray failed to win a race, he won his second start the previous year as an injury replacement.
"There is even more pressure on rookies these days," said Jeff Gordon, another Hendrick driver. "(More than five years ago) rookies weren't really winning races. You don't win a race now you're a disappointment."
The pressure will not subside within the demanding atmosphere of the Hendrick shop.
"For Brian, we want him in the top 10 or top 15," team owner Rick Hendrick said. "Top-10 would be a full day's work, but we want him to race competitively."
Young drivers, and rookies especially, can do that because they have better access to elite equipment and resources than ever before, a fact not lost on older drivers who struggled in their early years.
Gaughan, 28, led the truck series points race entering the final event at Homestead in November before an accident dropped him to fourth in the standings. He is instantly credible because he was signed this offseason by a Penske Racing South team that rarely makes mistakes in evaluating talent.
Kasey Kahne, 23, replaces Bill Elliott in the No. 9 Dodge after transitioning from open-wheel racing to the Busch Series, where he finished seventh last season.
Johnny Sauter, 25, adds another firebrand to the Richard Childress Racing stable in the No. 30 Chevrolet after helping RCR win an owners title in the Busch Series in 2003. Sauter made five Winston Cup starts for Morgan-McClure Motorsports, finishing 20th in his first race.
"Everybody says, "What's your goal?,"' Sauter said. "Your goal is to win every week. That's why you go racing, right? Start with top-20s and top-15s and work your way down. Rookie of the year is something you shoot for, but the goal is to win races."
Scott Wimmer, 28, replaced Ward Burton in Bill Davis Racing's No. 22 Dodge with four races remaining last season, after finishing second in the Busch Series in 2002. His on-track performance will be overshadowed until his Jan.31 drunken-driving arrest is resolved through the courts.
Then there's Scott Riggs, the old man of the group at 33, but with a thick racing background that includes two seasons in the Busch Series - where he won twice and finished sixth in points last season. He replaces Johnny Benson in MBV/MB2 Motorsport's No.10 Chevrolet.
"A lot of these guys have a lot of races under their belt like me and Wimmer, and then you have people who haven't even driven a Busch car like Brendan, who came up through trucks," Riggs said. "I think it's very good that many of us have raced together and know each other. I think you will see everyone getting along and racing together."
