Five questions for 2008

1. Can Toyota win a race?
They better. Toyota made its debut in the Nextel Cup Series in 2007. The Japanese automaker provided engines for three teams: Michael Waltrip Racing, Bill Davis Racing and Team Red Bull. None of the teams had much success. They struggled to qualify for races and there were times when none of the Toyota teams were in the top 35 in owners points. The top-35 teams earned at least provisional starting spots for every Cup race.
But the stakes will be raised in 2008. Toyota is teaming with Joe Gibbs Racing and drivers Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch. All three drivers are used to qualifying for the Chase for the Nextel Cup and winning races. Toyota better provide both if it wants to keep Gibbs and his drivers happy.

2. Will Dale Earnhardt Jr. be a championship contender with Hendrick Motorsports?
There’s no reason he shouldn’t. Hendrick Motorsports got three of its four drivers in the Chase this year. Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon are clearly the class of the team. But Busch, who is moving from Hendrick to Gibbs next year, and his team did just fine in the shadow of Johnson and Gordon. A little more experience and patience and Busch might have been in the middle of the championship chase. Johnson and Gordon are still the stars at Hendrick Motorsports and that might be just what Earnhardt Jr. needs. Perhaps he can slip into Johnson’s and Gordon’s shadow and turn his attention to just winning races.
3. Can Johnson win three Cup championships in a row?
No one’s done it since Cale Yarborough. Not Richard Petty, not Dale Earnhardt, not Jeff Gordon. Still it’s hard to say no to Johnson. He seems to have a knack for putting together his best races at the end of the year. To win a Cup championship these days, that’s exactly what needs to happen. If Johnson can pull off four or five wins in October and November, he will be in the thick of it again.
4. Is it a smart move for Sam Hornish Jr. to move into NASCAR?
No. A worse move is Roger Penske giving the owner’s points he earned from Kurt Busch’s car to Hornish next year. Because of his Cup title in 2004, Busch can fall back on a championship provisional to qualify for races, once or twice or six times. Ask Dale Jarrett how that worked out. Hornish, who had trouble qualifying for Cup races this year on speed, has no such provisional. But he would have guaranteed starting spots with Busch’s points. It just seems like a desperate move from an owner who is used to winning races and championships in the Indy Racing League. NASCAR is a different animal, one that requires patience, resources and money. Penske has the resources and money, but moving Hornish into NASCAR reeks of impatience.
5. Will Chevrolet dominate again?
Absolutely not. Ford drivers, especially at Roush Fenway Racing, made significant strides at the end of the year. Matt Kenseth won the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Greg Biffle won the race at Kansas Speedway, although there are those in the Clint Bowyer camp who would still say otherwise. More importantly, Ford won some races with NASCAR’s Car of Tomorrow. That trend will only increase next year. Toyota will be better and should win a race or two. Dodge, well ... Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman are the best chances. Juan Pablo Montoya will win another road course race. Outside of that, it will be another long year for Dodge.