McMurray ready for first Winston Cup experience

TALLADEGA, Ala -- Welcome to The Show, rook.

Massive Talladega Superspeedway awaits young Jamie McMurray, whose NASCAR "success" is limited at best. Sunday he'll take the No. 40 Coors Light Dodge to the track, driving in place of Sterling Marlin, who is done for the year due to a severely injured neck.

"If this is where it's chosen that I start then that's fine with me," the 26-year-old McMurray said. "I'm a racer. This is where I'm going to make my Winston Cup debut, and I'm happy with that."

If you're not sure who McMurray is, that's understandable.

Just five years ago he was racing -- and winning a lot -- at I-44 Speedway in Missouri and tracks in the surrounding states. This season is only second as a Busch driver after a year in ARCA and one in the Truck Series.

His best moment so far came in the Busch race at Richmond in September when McMurray quietly finished second while Dale Earnhardt Jr. blew the field away. That's about it.

There were a couple Truck poles in 1999 and a few top 10s (4). He's raced at Talladega twice before, both times getting caught up in big wrecks on the Busch Series. No wins, no poles. Very few mentions in the newspapers.

He's been told to drive "his tail off" this weekend, certainly an ominous task for one so inexperienced. He's also may be a tad bit naïve about this joint.

"I don't know if this is the most challenging place, because this is a place that the handling of the race car isn't all that important," he said.

Whoa, there cowboy. This is Talladega. Home of the 190-mph traffic jam. Principle residence of The Big Wreck. There are other things to be concerned about as well.

He then added: "I'm just going to do what I can and be careful."

So maybe he does have a sense of what is coming Sunday.

Jeff Green, driver of the No. 30 Chevy, said McMurray has a fast car but knowing who is behind the wheel will affect how people work with the Dodge on Sunday.

"I'm sure he'll get hung out a lot whereas if Sterling was in it, people would try to go with him," Green said.

Green said he'd tell McMurray to be patient, just put the right foot down and use his mind. If the car is as fast on the superspeedway as it has been in the past three races, Green and others will think about going with him to the front.

As for the long-term future, team owner Chip Ganassi announced in September that McMurray will drive the team's third entry, the No. 42 Havoline Dodge, in 2003.

"I've been a fan of Jamie's for a long time," minority owner Felix Sabates said. "I watch a lot of races on TV. I like his style of driving. He's smart. He gets out of the way when he needs to get out of the way. He's aggressive when he needs to be aggressive."

Green agreed with Sabates' assessment, saying McMurray was a better driver than his results over the past two years have indicated. Green competed against McMurray in the Busch Series before moving up to full-time Cup racing this season.

"He's definitely got talent," Green said. "And he's got youth on his side."

Sabates and Ganassi could have let McMurray finish out the season driving just Busch races. But in talking it over, they concluded that it made sense to give the driver seat time instead of employing a veteran. It is a gesture of faith. A big gesture.

The 40 car is fifth in owner points with seven races left in the season. To hand the ride over to a rookie is saying if he's good enough to drive the 42 next year, he is good enough to drive the 40 now.

Rookie Jimmie Johnson, who leads the points chase, said McMurray is up to the task.

"He's very level-headed," Johnson said. "He's from a very simple background, and he's worked very hard to get here. He really cares and wants to do a good job at it. He takes it very seriously."

McMurray has already found some good fortune. The car, which Marlin drove to a third-place finish in the spring race, was 10th fastest in practice. But the news from the afternoon was even better. With qualifying rained out, McMurray will start fifth. It will be interesting to stay how long he stays up front.

It should be quite a first race.