NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
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CUP: Who Will Break On Through In 2010?
Marcos Ambrose was one of several drivers to show major improvement in 2009...
Tom Jensen  |  Posted December 27, 2009   Charlotte, NC
Marcos Ambrose finished in 18th position in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points for 2009. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Juan Pablo Montoya and Brian Vickers each qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup for the first time in 2009. In the process, the two drivers led their respective teams into their initial appearances in NASCAR’s playoff round.

With the 2010 season less than two months away, there’s a strong chance that other drivers and teams will step up and make the Chase for the first time this season.

Of course, no one knows how things will play out next season. Who would have predicted, for example, that Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle would go winless in 2009 or that Kyle Busch would fail to make the Chase?

But you can bet someone will step up in 2010.

Here are some likely candidates to make it to the big time next season:

1. DAVID REUTIMANN, Michael Waltrip Racing — You could make a pretty compelling case that no team has come further, faster than MWR, which went from being literally one of the worst full-time Sprint Cup teams in his maiden season of 2007 to a consistent top-15 outfit in 2009.

Reutimann gave MWR its first race victory in 2009, taking the rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in May. He also had a respectable points finish, ending the year in 16th place after finishing 39th in 2007 and 22nd in ’08. In 2010, there’s no reason he shouldn’t make his first Chase appearance, and his new teammate Martin Truex Jr., who made the Chase once before, stands a good shot, too.

2. JAMIE McMURRAY, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates — Inexplicably, McMurray’s four-year run with Roush Fenway Racing was pretty much of a flop, with just two race victories and a best points finish of 16th in 2008. But now that McMurray is moving back to Chip Ganassi’s team, his fortunes ought to improve.

McMurray drove for Ganassi full-time from 2003-05, finishing between 11th and 13th in the points each season. But in 2004-05, only 10 racers made the Chase each season, which meant that McMurray narrowly missed twice. He has a solid opportunity to step up this year.

3. MARCOS AMBROSE, JTG-Daugherty Racing — In his first full season of Sprint Cup racing and with a brand-new team, the affable Aussie was an impressive 18th in points, with top-five finishes on road courses, a short track and a superspeedway.

There’s a reason that Ambrose was a two-time champion in the V8 Supercar Series in his native land: He’s a damned fine racer. And since his car is run out of the MWR shops, he should continue to benefit from the ongoing improvements at that team, just as Reutimann has.


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