A Great Year of Racing Ahead

The year 2008 was a mediocre season for many of NASCAR's best and brightest stars; a few names that come to mind are four-time Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon, two-time champ Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mark Martin, and Bobby Labonte.

This past season was Jeff Gordon's first winless season since 1993; that doesn't bode well for the No. 24 team. Jeff Gordon and Steve Letarte are proven winners whose unyielding efforts show that they have what it takes to get it done and win not only races but championships.

I strongly believe that Gordon is going to do all he can to take his mind off 2008 and start off strong in 2009 and make another attempt at the drive for five.

Tony Stewart was not happy when Joe Gibbs Racing announced that it would be making the switch to Toyota for the 2008 season.  He did not have a very good season to say the least, posting only one win in a controversial finish at Talladega.

In fact, the only driver who had a good season at JGR last year was Kyle Busch in the No. 18, but when it came down to it, he choked at New Hampshire and throughout the Chase, posting zero wins in the last ten races.

However, with Stewart now in the driver's seat for his own Chevy-powered team, it is imperative that he runs well this year.

Next, we have not only Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton, but the whole Richard Childress Racing stable. With the addition of a fourth team, RCR needs to step it up and perform this year to prove that it can win championships in the absence of the late great Dale Earnhardt Sr.

Dale Jr. made a big change last year and got off to a strong start, winning not only the Budweiser Shootout and his respective Gatorade Duel, but also breaking his No. 76 race winless streak at Michigan in June.

This year Dale Jr. has to live up to his family name; consistent top 10's are not enough to clinch that elusive first Cup Series Title.

Lastly, we have two veteran drivers getting in the cockpit of new rides this season. First, Mark Martin announced late last season that he would be running a full season in 2009 in Rick Hendrick's No. 5 Chevrolet.

History has proven Martin as being a good driver and an excellent competitor; he has competed for titles numerous times racing against the best of the best drivers. However, he always ended up in second.

The most recent time was in the 2007 Daytona 500, when he was edged out by .02 seconds by Kevin Harvick. Martin has what it takes to be a real contender and this year he has the best equipment at his disposal.

It would be great to see him in the Top 12 come Loudon in September. Our second veteran is none other than the 2000 Winston Cup Champion, Bobby Labonte; his new ride is the No. 96 Ask.com Ford.

The past few years, he's been on the failing Petty Enterprises, whose last victory came in 1999 with John Andretti. Now on the up and coming Hall of Fame Racing, Labonte has been given another chance to prove to the fans and teams that he is no has-been.

For most of these drivers, winning is crucial in order to obtain or maintain sponsorship, especially in today's economy. Sponsors want winning teams;  if teams can't perform they won't have sponsorship dollars in the near future.

Finally, two drivers to keep an eye on this season are Carl Edwards and Jimmie Johnson. Johnson has just come off his third consecutive championship and now he'll be looking to break Cale Yarborough's record and win four in a row.

However, Carl Edwards is still looking to win his first title, and he is going to really be pressing hard to unseat Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports.

Edwards will be doing all he can this year to end up sitting up at the Champion's Table come December when NASCAR heads back to New York City.

No matter how 2009 turns out, it's definitely shaping up to be a great year of racing.