How Does the Car Make the NASCAR Driver?

Dale Earnhardt was known as The Man in Black, after the car he drove and subsequently made famous. It was a sleek black and silver GM Goodwrench car that screamed around the track with No. 3 on the door.

Just as the drivers did before him and the many are doing in his absence, drivers and their identities are becoming synonymous with the car they drive.

You could probably walk down the toy aisle of your local K-Mart or Wal-mart and upon seeing a plastic die-cast, know whose car that is. Sitting in the stands, what's the first thing you seek out? Probably the finely painted car that signifies your hero, and it's those colors you follow all day or night.

For some drivers it has been their car that has shaped them and just like Earnhardt, it's how they will be remembered.

Richard Petty is called The King because of his seven cup championships and two hundred career wins. And when one thinks of Petty they can clearly see the now famous "Petty Blue" and red number 43.

Marcus Ambrose has run the Petty paint scheme in the Nationwide Series on occasion, bringing back memories from the era of Richard Petty. When Petty's era ended, Jeff Gordon's began and so did the nicknames.

Wonder Boy, Flash Gordon, The Kid and the more popular one: The Rainbow Warriors. Gordon's car in his early career resembled that of a rainbow and you'll never see him in anything except a multi-colored Dupont Chevrolet. The No. 24, the colors, and the car with the signature flames are who Jeff Gordon is.

His lifetime contract with Hendrick Motorsports and long-term deal with Dupont means Jeff Gordon's image has been set. This makes it difficult to see some drivers shed the colors and image they've had for so long.

Mark Martin's faithful may remember him fondly for his days in the Roush No. 6 when it had either Valvoline or Viagra on the hood. Then came the move to DEI and the U.S. Army and the number was now 8. But before he could settle in there, he announced his teaming with Tony the Tiger's Kellogg's, Hendrick Motorsports and now the No. 5.

It's a whole new persona.

The same applies for Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch.

For Dale Earnhardt Jr. he went from the Bud King to, well, Amp Energy green and National Guard blue. For so long you just needed to look for the sea of red and his historic No. 8.

It seemed his image was set and everyone knew what they got: driving for his daddy, the big Bud hood and all decked in red. Now he looks like a whole new man.

That 's how Tony Stewart will look in 2009 as he goes from Big Orange to Mr. Old Spice. It became a running joke from the commentators and a nickname, Big Orange, after his car when other competitors would see it coming in their rear-view mirrors.

When you think Tony Stewart, you can envision bright orange and The Home Depot, a perfect combination.

Just like Kyle Busch and Joe Gibbs Racing. If the aforementioned drivers had their car help "make them," then the youngest Busch is going to make the car he's driving famous. Busch has launched the M&M's brand into (more) superstardom with the season he's having thus far. If he were to go on to win the championship, that would also up the company's marketability.

Elliott Sadler and Ken Schrader have both driven an M&M-sponsored car but it hasn't gotten nearly the amount of attention or collected as many checkered flags then with Kyle Busch.

Finally, Jimmie Johnson will also drive his car into infamy. The two-time Sprint Cup champion and Chad Knaus led team have looked indestructible these last couple of years. The blue and neon yellow Lowe's Chevrolet with a 48 on the side of it will be known as Jimmie Johnson's race car, no matter who may drive it in the future.

In the past, just like the M&M's and Kyle Busch, Lowe's used to be on the quarter panels of Mike Skinner's Chevrolet. And just as before mentioned, they never had the success or the championships that Johnson has brought them.

Every car is unique to the driver that sits behind its wheel. Every design has its own meaning, from flames to the flash of a solid color. It's that which helps make the driver and racing exciting; and a lot more interesting. No one wants to see their pretty paint scheme in a heap of crunched metal.

Plus, it's more interesting that seeing plain white cars go around the track. They tried that in the IROC Series and that division no longer exists. Let's be honest: with the paint schemes comes the money, and that makes everything go 'round and 'round.

The car and the driver go hand-and-hand, with one helping make the other.