Mears, Riggs try to Dodge opponents
Timothy Haddock, Staff writer
Casey Mears
Kasey Kahne and Kurt Busch started the Dodge victory parade by winning three of the past four NASCAR Nextel Cup Series races. Now the big question is, who's next?
Some would say Casey Mears is the next Dodge driver in line to win a race. He will be the first to say he can't believe he hasn't won one yet.
"Yeah, it's a little annoying," Mears said. "We came so close over last year; the last 10 races we were so competitive and leading laps and running up front. This year, even though we've run well, we've had a good start to the season, but we just haven't been as fast as we were last year."
Then again, Scott Riggs, teammate to Kahne and Evernham Motorsports, has been creeping up in races lately and could be the next Dodge driver to win a race.
"The only difference is we have a little bit different paint scheme every week, that's all," said Riggs, when asked to compare his team to Kahne's. "All three teams have the same information. All three teams work together as brothers across the board from the engineering side to the testing side to anything."
Dodge is experiencing a bit of a renaissance. Somewhat unexpectedly, the Dodge camps have become the envy of NASCAR. Especially at Evernham Motorsports and Penske Racing South, Dodge drivers are running up front and winning races.
But it wasn't always that way.
It wasn't that long ago when some of the Dodge camps were undecided on which body to use. Some teams wanted to try the old Intrepid body. Busch's team actually used it in a race.
But the Ganassi teams and the Evernham teams stuck with the Charger. It paid off with two wins for Kahne. And it has made Mears a Chase contender. The recent Dodge successes have made Riggs more confident about the Dodge program.
Absolutely, it makes us feel confident in what we're doing," Riggs said. "It makes us feel confidence in our cars and confidence in our team."
Next up for the Nextel Cup Series is Sunday's race at PhoenixInternational Raceway. Busch won the spring race at Phoenix last year, but that was in a Ford for Roush Racing.
It will be interesting to see if he can be as successful at Phoenix in a Dodge.
But given Dodge's record over the past two months, it wouldn't be surprising to see him win there again.
It wouldn't be surprising to see any of the Dodge drivers win in Phoenix.
"There are two things you can't buy. You can't buy confidence and experience," Riggs said. "Those are two things you have to earn and build on. When that confidence starts rising and you get on that roll, that momentum roll that Kasey and the (No.) 9 team are on right now, it makes it better for everyone around ...
"That's usually when everybody is relaxed and your best ideas and work come forward. It's definitely inspiring for me to have my teammate run well." Tim Haddock covers motor sports for the Daily News. His column appears Thursdays.
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