All Eyes on Truex.(Motorsports)(Busch Series)

Byline: AL PEARCE

Most NASCAR watchers figure Martin Truex Jr. is a lock to repeat as Busch Series champion. And why not? The team that won last year's title by 230 points returns intact. The four drivers closest in points have left Busch or won't run the full schedule. Four of the five drivers behind them in '04 points must adjust to new teams.

Truex Jr. was a relative unknown when Chance 2 Motorsports hired him in 2003. He rewarded co-owners Teresa Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr. with seven poles, six wins and 17 top-fives. He clinched in the penultimate race at Darlington in November, but the outcome had long been a foregone conclusion.

The landscape will look dramatically different this year. Second-ranked Kyle Busch (younger brother of Cup champion Kurt Busch) is a Cup rookie for Hendrick Motorsports. Third-ranked Greg Biffle will concentrate on Cup after running both series for Roush Racing last year. Fourth-ranked Ron Hornaday has returned to the Craftsman Series, where he was the '96 champ. Fifth-ranked Mike Bliss is back in Cup, this time with Haas-CNC Racing.

Jason Keller, David Green, Ashton Lewis Jr., Kenny Wallace and David Stremme finished sixth through 10th last year but have some adjusting to do. Keller and Lewis Jr. are new to Ford-based Rensi Motorsports. Green, the '94 Busch champ, returns to Brewco Motorsports, but in a Ford instead of a GM product. Wallace goes from Bill Davis Racing to PPC, and Stremme returns to Fitz/Bradshaw Racing, where he finished last year after starting with Phoenix Racing.

About a dozen other full-schedule teams will offer stiff competition, including Justin Labonte (Terry's son) in a Chevrolet from ...