Benny Parsons

Juan Pablo Montoya has left Formula One to race a full schedule in Nextel Cup in 2007.

He'll find his first season in NASCAR will involve a steep learning curve, but I feel that by 2008 he should be a contender to run upfront and win each and every week.

Montoya made his Nextel Cup debut at Homestead-Miami Speedway in the final race of 2006. I thought he was pretty competitive in that event before his day ended after 251 of the 268 laps. Montoya got knocked into the wall on a restart, and his Dodge caught fire when the fuel cell was damaged. He ended up coming home 34th.

The biggest adjustments Montoya faces in going from Formula One to NASCAR involve the weight of the cars and the type of tires they run on.

In Formula One they groove the tires to take some of the tread off of them. Since Formula One cars are about half the weight of stock cars their tires are much softer. Formula One cars have more grip since they don't abuse the tires as badly as stock cars do. Montoya has to get used to his Cup cars not having the kind of grip his Formula One cars had.

Another key to how well Montoya fares in Cup racing will be his relationship with his crew chief Donnie Wingo, who has 15 years of crew-chief experience on NASCAR's top circuit.

So far Wingo has just loved working with Montoya. Wingo says Montoya has a tremendous feel for a car, and he is able to come back to Wingo after changes have been made to the car and tell his crew chief exactly how those changes impacted the way the car performed.

A crucial element as to how well Wingo and Montoya click will be the communication between the two. I'm not talking about conveying feedback on changes made to the car -- as I've pointed out that's not a problem. What I am getting at is that Wingo will be using language and terms that everyone who grew up with stock-car racing is accustomed to hearing.

But Montoya is not very familiar with these terms because he comes from an open-wheel background. And that not only affects his communication with Wingo, but it also impacts how well he understands what his spotter is trying to tell him over the radio during a race.

So there will be a period of time over which Montoya will be getting familiar with the jargon used in Cup racing, and while that's hardly a cause for great concern, it could impact his results.

It's way too early to tell if Montoya will someday become a championship contender on the Cup circuit, but he's got a chance at that, and he certainly seems to have the resolve to make it happen.  

I was as stunned as the rest of the racing world when in July Montoya announced his was going from open-wheel to stock-car racing. Montoya's move is just further proof that NASCAR has risen to the top of the motor sports world.

Formula One will argue with that statement, but the fact that Montoya made the switch says it all. It makes a huge statement. NASCAR has arrived. It is now internationally known and recognized as a world-class racing organization.

Q: With the disappointing season for Roush Racing, and with Mark Martin leaving, what do you expect from the Roush teams in 2007?
— Bill Armstrong, Lakeville, Minn.

A: Roush had a great 2005 when all five of its cars qualified for the Chase for the Nextel Cup championship. So who would have thought that in 2006 only two Roush cars -- those driven by Matt Kenseth and Mark Martin -- would make it to the 10-race playoff?

I haven't talked to Jack Roush a whole lot of late, but I did have a conversation with him where it was clear to me that he understands that Roush Racing has fallen behind in engineering. There is some engineering equipment Roush Racing needs to add, and I'm sure it will do so this winter.

In addition to the plan to add engineering equipment, Roush has been proactive in changing up his crew chief-driver pairings. I just feel like the changes that he has made are going to pay off.

Kenseth finished second in points in 2006, but when I think about 2007, I really wonder which Roush car will prove the best. Is it going to be Kenseth or Greg Biffle or Carl Edwards?

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Edwards has been reunited with his former crew chief Bob Osborne, and that seems to me to be a good move and a fit that could produce a big season.

Kenseth and his crew chief Robbie Reiser weren't able to get what they needed out of their cars in the Chase, and I think that will reinvigorate them for 2007.

Biffle gets a new crew chief in Pat Tryson, who for the last four seasons filled that role for Mark Martin. I feel pairing these two will be a plus for Roush Racing.

So there is reason for Roush to be optimistic that each of his top three drivers can enjoy much success in 2007.

Q: Looking through the eyes of a racing fan, do you think the Chase is a good thing?

From my view the last few races leading up to the start of the Chase are more like Happy Hour for those drivers on the inside who don't want to fall out of making the playoff.

I say put the system back the way it was, but with a bigger reward for winning races and maybe even sweeten the pot for the top-five finishers in each race.
— Charlie Buck, Nitro, W. Va.

A: I think the Chase for the Nextel Cup championship is exciting, but I agree with you that the last few races leading up to Richmond -- which is the last race before the Chase begins -- were not very exciting. No driver in the top 10 wanted to take a chance and risk a crash because that might very well have cost him a spot in the playoff.

At the last race of 2006, Jimmie Johnson, who won the Nextel Cup title, made a very telling statement when he said that he would trade his 23 career Cup wins for a championship. That to me is a sad commentary that winning the Nextel Cup title has gotten to the point where it's hypothetically worth 23 race wins.

Somehow NASCAR has to get to where the sum -- meaning winning the Cup championship -- isn't everything. Winning races should be a bigger deal. So I agree that more points should be awarded for race victories, and maybe even as you also suggest more points should be awarded for finishing a race in the top five.

I say keep the Chase, but tweak it.  

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