A man with a plan: Martin Truex is headed for the Busch Series championship and a graduation to Cup--but not until the time is right for him and his team.(NASCAR)(National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing)

Martin Truex should be on final approach now. Five races left, 208-point lead over Kyle Busch. Brush up the speech. Pick up the 2004 Busch Series champion's trophy, thank the folks for coming and vanish into a bright Nextel Cup sunrise ... NOT.

"There's a lot of work left for this team to do to be ready to move up to Cup," says Truex, who used patience and skill to reach the top in his first full Busch season. "Until we're ready as a team, I'm in no hurry."

Many see NASCAR racing in the 21st century as a microwave souffle, but Truex, 24, and his No. 8 Chance 2 Racing team see themselves as more of a Crock-Pot concoction. For those with short memories, this isn't the first go-around for this script with a team connected to Dale Earnhardt Inc. Dale Earnhardt Jr., who owns Chance 2 with stepmother Teresa Earnhardt, won the 1998 Busch Series title, then won a second championship in 1999 while also running five Cup races.

With four races left, Truex has six victories in 2004 compared with seven for Earnhardt in his first championship season, seven poles to Earnhardt's three and 22 top 10 finishes, the same as Earnhardt had. It's obvious Truex can handle a lot of situations. Check out the way he swooped into the lead on the last lap and won at Nazareth and the way he battled back and finished the race at Kansas after an early wreck.

"If we had dominated every race and led every lap, I'd still think there are things we would have to learn," Truex says. "I think Junior's pretty smart about it. He ran two years, and the second year he got some valuable experience that made it easier when he moved up full time."

There is no single blueprint to follow on the path to Nextel Cup racing. For instance, some eyebrows were raised when Evernham Motorsports signed former open-wheel racer Kasey Kahne, who finished seventh in points in his only full Busch season. But Evernham saw Kahne's talent and paired him with veteran crew chief Tommy Baldwin. Kahne is on top of the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings in Nextel Cup. He hasn't won, but he has finished second five ...