IN SIGHT King of stock cars and queens of tennis. FOCUS: JIMMIE JOHNSON After finishing 38th at Dover in June, things looked bleak for Jimmie Johnson. After all, the super soph was a season-worst seventh in points. Yep, seventh. That's as bad as it got for Johnson, who finished the season with six consecutive top-threes and cruised to an overall second-place finish in the points. And while second is slightly short (90 points, in this case) of Johnson's championship goal, he's not complaining. "Being the first loser doesn't bother me too much. I didn't expect to be in this position," said Johnson, who won three races this season. "Of course I wanted to win the championship this year. I wanted to win it last year and do something that no one's ever done. "It doesn't mean that we're not putting in everything that we can. But we're in a position where we don't need to put any additional pressure on ourselves. If you look at history, it usually takes three, four, or five years to get the driver and the team into championship form. Maybe next year will be that special year for us." Just about every driver can look back at a season and identify a handful of races that cost the team valuable points -- a blown tire here, a bad pit call there. Johnson did have more wins and top-five finishes than Cup champ Matt Kenseth, but Kenseth seemed to get all the bounces. And that's basically the difference between winning a championship and, well, not. "It takes a lot of luck," said Johnson. "If you look at Matt Kenseth's year, he's been fast and done all the great things but he's had flat tires at the right point in time and only been caught up in one or two wrecks and blown one engine. That's hard to do. "At the end of the year, the guy with the shortest list of 'what ifs' will be the champion. The competition is too close. Everybody is going to win. Everybody is going to win poles. Everybody is going to be up front. It's that 'what if' category at the end of the year." Sure, he drives with and for Jeff Gordon. And he sit behind the wheel of Rick Hendrick cars. But Johnson's success has come faster than just about anyone expected -- including Johnson himself. "It was just a great year for the entire Lowe's team. I never in my wildest dreams expected to have six wins (over two seasons), The Winston, all the poles, and a fifth place finish last year and a second place finish this year. But we're here and it's been a reality to be this competitive through the midway point of last year." PIT PASS Among the many interesting and noteworthy faces at Sunday's Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami was 2003 CART champ Paul Tracy. Might he be scouting the series as a future home? According to car owner Richard Childress, that just might be the case. "We spoke (Saturday). I'd like to see how he does in one," Childress told TSN. "The first thing we have to do is set up a chance." Tracy has said he's optimistic about CART's future, but NASCAR could be an option if the series does fold. Former CART drivers Christian Fittipaldi and Robby Gordon -- who drives for Childress -- and current Champ Car pilot Jimmy Vasser all competed in NASCAR Winston Cup or Busch events this season. NASCAR is where the money and fame (in America, anyway) are, but it still might be a last resort for Tracy, who recently shared his feelings on NASCAR's popularity during an ESPN.com chat. "If you go into Mexico, Canada, Europe, NASCAR racing is not very popular at all by comparison to open wheel racing," said Tracy, an Ontario native. "That's just an American thing to be fascinated by racing with cars your mom drives to the grocery store." Regardless of Tracy's feelings on stock cars, Childress believes the fiery CART champ is the perfect fit. "I think he's the perfect combination," Childress told TSN. "He's a great driver and a great personality." It's a young man's game. You can't teach an old dog new tricks. (Insert name here) has discovered the Fountain of Youth. What, have the editors at RPM.ESPN.com just raided the Dimwit's Dictionary of overused phrases for their abominable lead? Of course we have. Consider it our service to those of you who somehow misplaced your own copy. But what we've also done is brilliantly set the stage for this age-old debate about fresh-faced hotshots versus timeless classics. Or should that be, what's hot versus what's not? NASCAR is looking toward the future, moving races west whenever possible with Nextel in the fold as the 33-year run with RJR as title sponsor has gone, well, up in smoke. (Our sincere apologies.) That run of more than three decades, coincidentally, is longer than any of the six drivers being featured in the Gillette Young Guns ad campaign has been alive. Included in that $20 million marketing deal are Jimmie Johnson (28), Matt Kenseth (31), Ryan Newman (25), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (29), Kevin Harvick (27) and Kurt Busch (25). That's an average age of 27.5. Which, if you ask newly-crowned Busch Series champion Brian Vickers, is still seven years away. With both the Busch and Craftsman Truck champions this year having the distinction of being the youngest ever to hoist those series' trophies, it's clear the Playstation generation is taking over. But what's also clear is that the old guard maintains a huge fan base. Bill Elliott walks away with fan favorite voting more often than Newman walks away with Bud Pole Awards. In 2001, Elliott removed his name from the ballot for the National Motorsports Press Association's most popular driver award after having won the honor a record 15 times. Elliott's late surge this season, dampened by a cut tire at Homestead-Miami, captivated many fans that we suspect feel alienated by the youth movement. Think we're out of touch? Check our e-mail inbox sometime. You Elliott fans don't mind for a second that your hero is 48 and has a few wrinkles around the eyes. And neither do we. Is there a place for Elliott in today's Nextel world? You bet. Would it be good if he returned in '04? It certainly would be. While the marketing machines are always seeking the next big thing, true fans in any sport will remember what and who got them there. Elliott is one of those timeless wonders who reminded us at the end of this season he still has a few tricks up his sleeve. (You knew we had another cliche in us, didn't you?) EXHAUST FUMES Montoya F1 soap: Once again, Formula One is all about drama. Sure, drivers have announced intentions and even signed contracts to move to another team when the next season comes around while still completing the terms of their current contracts. But Juan Pablo Montoya and McLaren inking a deal for 2005 when we haven't even reached 2004 yet? A bit over the top, no? Well, maybe not. Sure, nobody desires a lame duck season. But there are actually benefits. There's little doubt that Montoya will be going all out for a championship during his final year with Williams. And if Montoya is indeed in the title hunt, it's a safe bet that Montoya will receive the full support and backing of his Williams BMW team. Further, knowing Montoya is leaving does allow Williams to not only get a head start at looking for a replacement, but also to withhold from him any potential chassis, engine or other technological advances the team might be employing for the 2005 car. But that could have also been accomplished had Montoya privately told his current team of his intentions. With the public announcement, Williams is saved from the constant rumor, speculation and scrutiny it would have no doubt been subject to next season had the announcement that Montoya was joining McLaren not been made. Same goes for McLaren in terms of David Coulthard's future -- that is, if the team does confirm that it's Kimi Raikkonen and not Coulthard who will team with Montoya in 2005. Of course, now Williams will be subject to never ending questions about whether Ralf Schumacher is getting preferential treatment over Montoya and how the team is progressing in its search for a driver. And any repeat of a mid-race strategy change will surely be seen as evidence that Montoya's continued presence with Williams is necessary but not welcome -- despite whether that's actually the reality of the situation. But the reality isn't quite as important as the drama. After all, this is Formula One we're talking about. MAILBAG

NASCAR is taking a lot of the "racing" out of the sport with some of its new rules: Giving a lap back to the first car one lap down and not allowing racing back to the flag. The rules were surely put into place for safety reasons, but could be modified to say that they can only race back to the finish under certain circumstances? Use a different caution flag, such as yellow for "watch for problems but race to the flag" and yellow with a black stripe meaning "stop racing immediately." The spotters can let the drivers know which flag is out when they call the caution. By giving a lap back under the new rules, the "lucky dog" simply has to stay in front of the other lapped cars, he doesn't have to race with the leaders. I have been a race fan for eight years and all these new rules are taking a lot of exciting racing away from the sport! Let's be safe, but LET THEM RACE! Connie Jacksonville Beach, Fla. C'mon, Connie -- tell us how you really feel. Not allowing racing back to a caution seems to be a necessarily evil. Really, there have been very few instances since Dale Jarrett's car was stuck in the middle of the track just before the rule was implemented where the benefits of the rule were obvious. Assuming race control could make a quick and correct call as to which yellow flag to throw, your idea for two separate yellows -- not dissimilar to full-course and local yellows on road and street courses -- has merit. If the cause of the caution isn't in the way or in danger, let 'em race. As for the lucky dog rule, karma has allowed many drivers who shouldn't have lost a lap to get it back. At the same time, there are too many problems with the rule to list. It does have potential, though. Got your own questions about what's happening in the pits? Ask away, and we'll answer a question or two in the next Gas&Go. Name: E-mail address: City, state: Your comment: OVERHEARD Bobby Labonte On winning at Homestead: "(Elliott) just started wiggling and I just started screaming on the radio. It was a gift. It was way cool for us to win a race." Juan Montoya On joining McLaren: "The team is consistently a strong world championship contender and has a fantastic heritage. ... To join them is an amazing challenge and experience which I plan to fully enjoy." Ted Musgrave On NASCAR's ruling which cost him the CTS crown: "Screw 'em. Next year, you're going to see the biggest cheatin' son of a (gun) you've ever seen."