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2004 Season Final Points Standing 17th After First 26 Races 20th Earnings $4,092,877 Starts 36 Poles 1 Wins 2 Top 5 4 6-10 4 Laps Led 356 Lead Lap Finishes 17 Bonus Points 60 Races Led 10

2004 Performance Below is the ranking of the team on each type of track along with the driver's best finish. Track Type Ranking Flat Tracks 19th Best Finish 1st, Homestead Intermediate Tracks 16th Best Finish 1st, Michigan Plate Tracks 21st Best Finish 12th, Daytona Road Courses 23rd Best Finish 13th, Infineon Short Tracks 17th Best Finish 8th, Richmond

One sure measure of a young and talented driver is the number of veterans who complain about his aggressive driving style. Biffle has ruffled the feathers of several, but they all agree — he can drive a race car. That might be the best endorsement a driver can have.

The weak point on his résumé is his performance on road courses. However, he qualified on the front row and led 23 laps at Watkins Glen in ’03 and finished a respectable 13th at Infineon last season, so there might be hope.

Biffle won the July Daytona event in ’03 and followed that up with two wins (Michigan and Homestead) in ’04. Although the team had little to show in the first half of ’04, they had some great runs in the second. He had a fast enough car to win at least 10 races and was the best Roush Racing had to offer in a handful of events. Even with too many mechanical failures and a handful of crashes, Biffle managed to finish 17th in the final point standings.

It was a frequent flyer season for Biffle as well, as he raced a full Busch schedule to go along with his full season in the Cup car. The grueling schedule could have worn him down, but Biffle seemed to handle the pressure well.

• The Good: The two wins are obviously good, but his performance at Kansas tops the chart. After leading 64 laps, he blew a tire and had to come from the rear of the field to finish third.

• The Bad:In the Nextel All-Star Race, Biffle harshly criticized teammate Kurt Busch for a crash that took out several cars. It’s not nice to hammer your teammate, even if you’re justified in doing so.

• The Ugly: The ’04 season was full of mechanical failures and at least three blown motors. The team was fast at most tracks, but if you can’t finish, fast doesn’t matter.