The Outside Groove 2006 Season Preview--Part 3

7 through 9--Kid-Friendly sponsors like cereal, candy, and automotive financing.

7. 5 Kyle Busch
The Case For: Won last year’s ROTY award against a crowded field of Travis Kvapil and…Wayne Anderson?
The Case Against: Car still hideously ugly.
Changes: None really, though Kyle has reportedly spent the entire off-season trying to grow a goatee.
Fun Fact: Busch’s crew chief has the same last name, Gustafson, as William H. Macy’s character in “Fargo”. Don’t be surprised if Kyle winds up getting kidnapped and held for ransom by much-beloved character actor Steve Buscemi.

8. 38 Elliott Sadler
The Case For: Will be driving the new Ford Fusion, which should give Ford teams the same level of success Dodge teams had last year with the Charger.
The Case Against: Hermie won’t stop bugging him for a job.
Changes: Tommy Baldwin has his first full year as crew chief of the 38 team on tap. Baldwin, incidentally, has the name that sounds the most like a low-level mafia hitman.
Fun Fact: Even Elliott himself doesn’t realize how funny it was in that Stacker 2 commercial when he talked about meeting the “WWE Soo-pahh-stahhs”.

9. 25 Brian Vickers
The Case For: Is ready for a break-through season.
The Case Against: You could’ve said that last year.
Changes: Unfortunately, not much—which means that Garnier Frutis is coming back.
Fun Fact: Brian didn’t get the joke of his interview on The Daily Show.