Ragan not worried about replacing Martin in series (cont'd)

"I'm continuing to feel more comfortable week in and week out," Ragan said. "I'm working with Jimmy better week in and week out. We'll sneak up on this thing. Fifteen, 20 races into the year when we pop up with a strong top-five run, possibly a pole, a win or something down the road, it will surprise everyone."

As a rookie in the Cup Series, Ragan will have to earn the respect of drivers like Stewart who will want to see if the youngster can handle himself on the track. But being with a team like Roush Fenway Racing, Ragan has the resources at his disposal to learn as much as possible.

"It helps to have some great teammates to lean on," Ragan said. "Matt Kenseth, I think he's probably one of the most respected guys in the garage. I think Matt is one of the best drivers out there. He's one of the smartest, definitely. He's been there, won championships.

"I talk to Carl [Edwards], too. He's running a lot of the Busch races. He and I can relate on a lot of things. Then Greg [Biffle] has come up through the Truck Series, the Busch Series somewhat like I have. I really try to talk to those guys a lot."

The Truck Series is where Ragan has seen most of his success. In two seasons -- one with Tim Eldridge and one with Jack Roush -- Ragan finished in the top 10 eight times, including a fifth-place finish at Kentucky in 2006. The transition from trucks to Cup cars is what Ragan is having the most difficulty with.

"One of my toughest challenges [has been] 500 miles versus 200 or 300. You have to go about things a little different," he said. "They've been preaching to me you don't have to drive as hard as you can for all 500 laps. You have to be in a comfort zone at times. You have to think about how to have your car handling at the end of the race versus the start of the race.

"Things like that have been a lot different for me moving up to the Cup Series. I feel that we're taking the right steps to get going. As a racer, I want to go as hard as I can. I'm probably scaled back to 90 or 95 percent right now. As I get more comfortable, know what I want, and as Jimmy understands what I need to go fast and still be able to take care of the racecar, we'll learn how each other feels about it."

For Ragan, right now it's all about learning a balance, when to be aggressive and when to lay back. Earning the respect of drivers is important, but Ragan won't consume himself with what others are saying about him. He just wants to go out, be competitive and try to win some races.

"I think the way you earn respect is go out, you don't have to let them by, you don't have to suck up to them, but race them hard, race them with respect," he said. "That's something I've really tried to do.

"I understand when you're 50 to go or maybe 100 laps to go, you're not as lenient as you are in the beginning. That will come with time. I feel that I'm trying to do a good job. I may be a little too conservative at times, giving people extra room.

"Time will tell. Right now I don't go around and ask other drivers what they think. Time will tell, but I think we're on the right track in getting a little more respect in the garage."