Biffle hopes to recapture promise with crew changes

	After entering 2006 as one of the circuit's brightest lights, Greg Biffle's failure to reach the Chase dimmed his prospects a bit. Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR
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Last year only 35 points separated Greg Biffle from Tony Stewart and a Nextel Cup championship. This year, even when he won, he seemed to have a problem finding Victory Lane.

With his six victories, in 2005, the "Biff" was a favorite for the title this year. By the end of it, though, Biffle was struggling to remain even a blip on the NASCAR radar scope. Still, with a third-straight season ending victory at Homestead Miami Speedway, Biffle appears to still have what it takes to challenge for a title

Car owner Jack Roush said "the fact that Greg didn't have the success that last year would have indicated was out there, was not Greg's fault; we just didn't get it done. We lost the magic this year for Greg. If I get the car right, he'll be able to compete for a championship like he did last year," added Roush. "We lost the magic. It wasn't his fault; a lot of responsibility falls on the crew chief if these thing fall apart."

Just like a baseball manager whose team falls short, Doug Richert, who's been Biffle's crew chief since August '03, has been replaced for '07.

To reignite Biffle's Cup career Roush has moved crew chief, Pat Tryson, over from Mark Martin, who's going into semi-retirement, and obtained a new look by tapping Ameriquest Mortgage -- which had been a Busch Series sponsor -- to help foot the bill instead of the National Guard.

Whether a fresh voice in the pits and a new paint job is enough to turn things around is uncertain. But Biffle at least has embraced the changes. "I'm really excited to continue our relationship with Ameriquest," said Biffle. "I had a lot of fun racing the Busch car this year and in only our second race got to Victory Lane. It's been a while since then and we've been trying to get back to Victory Lane."

But as Roush added, "of course, we didn't make the Chase and that was one of the biggest disappointments of my racing career, as well as Greg's, that we weren't able to get that done. But moving people around and looking for these ideal combinations of chemistry, which can be fleeting, [takes time]. [But] sometimes it abides for years and years, which I hope we can achieve here with Pat and with Greg. I know Pat has looked at me out of the corner of his eye about what was going to happen in the post-Mark timeframe."