Carmichael has been very impressive in his first two truck races. He was running in fourth place at Daytona when he was taken out in a multi-truck crash, and then made a late race charge at California to come from 19th place to finish eighth. Along the way, Carmichael has received critical and strenuous coaching from team-owner Harvick, who has been on the radio during practices and the races, helping Carmichael during and after each run. In addition, former Cup and Truck Series veteran Andy Houston is Carmichael’s spotter, offering another voice of experience for the rookie, while teammate Ron Hornaday is yet another mentor.

With a wealth of experience coaching him, Carmichael still needs to drive the truck himself. And that’s where the innate talent comes into play. Last weekend, Carmichael said it took him all of practice, qualifying and the first 50 laps of the race just to acclimate to the wicked speed of the two-mile Auto Club Speedway. Once he had become accustomed, his confidence and performance improved.

Carmichael was known in the motorcycle world for his unmatched work ethic, constantly riding and working out to give him an edge on the competition. He outworked the rest of the field because he wasn’t born with as much natural talent as some of the others. But can work ethic alone overcome talent?

Carmichael believes some people are born with more talent and don’t have to work as hard.

“I would take work ethic over talent,” Carmichael explains. “When times get hard, it seems that the less-talented guy comes out on top because it wasn't easy for him and he’s used to working for it rather than just leaning on talent.”

Someone so inexperienced simply should not be doing the things Carmichael has done in only two races without a honed seat-of-the-pants feel and vision. It’s the same skill that made Mario Andretti, AJ Foyt and Tony Stewart winners in whatever racecar they step into. Put Michael Schumacher in a stock car and I’m sure he’d be a thrill to watch. They are racers: not just drivers. The latest racer to add to that list? Kyle Busch. He’s scary talented and has a work ethic to drive almost anything, anywhere at any time.

I believe it’s the racers who are born with the skills that are honed and perfected with years of experience. So, will Carmichael be only a driver or will he remain one of the best racers no matter what machine he’s racing? Stay tuned.

The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEEDtv.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or Speed Channel

Jade Gurss is the owner of fingerprint, inc., a sports publicity company. He has written two New York Times Best Sellers, including what is believed to be the biggest-selling motorsports book in American publishing history (Driver #8 with Dale Earnhardt Jr.). His two decades of publicity and marketing experience involves nearly every category of motorsports, including nine innovative seasons as NASCAR publicist for the Budweiser brand and Earnhardt Jr. His blog can be seen at: http://fingerprint.typepad.com