NEXTEL CUP SERIES Biffle has credentials to be among best

He's the only driver to have won championships on the Busch and Truck series.
FONTANA, Calif. (AP) -- People tend to overlook Greg Biffle.
At 35, he certainly isn't one of NASCAR's so-called Young Guns, nor is he a big talker who elicits much attention. But Biffle definitely has credentials.
A newspaper recently did an anonymous survey of 15 Nextel Cup drivers, asking their opinion on the best in the series. Biffle was on a very short list led by four-time champion Jeff Gordon.
Biffle is the only driver to have won championships in both the Busch and Craftsman Truck series. Now, he's giving every indication of being a serious contender for another title in his third full season on NASCAR's top circuit.
"Biffle is no surprise to anybody in the NASCAR garage," said teammate and series champion Kurt Busch. "Everybody knows what a good driver he is and how tough he and that No. 16 team can be if they put it all together."
Has four Nextel Cup wins
Although his first two years in the Cup series produced finishes of 20th and 17th in the standings, the driver from Vancouver, Wash., has four victories. But two of those wins have come in his last three races -- the season-finale last year at Homestead-Miami Speedway and last Sunday at California Speedway.
The win here was particularly impressive, with Biffle twice coming from far back in the field and leading the last 23 laps.
It was apparently no surprise to Biffle, who predicted he would win the race after testing at the track in January.
"After that test, I had a pretty strong feeling that we would win out here if something crazy didn't happen," he explained.
But that doesn't mean it was easy. He muscled his ill-handling Ford to the end, beating hard-charging Jimmie Johnson by six car lengths.
Toughest win
"This was the toughest of my life to earn," Biffle said. "We overcame more in that race than I ever have in a race car. The car was so loose at times I could hardly keep it going in the right direction, and I didn't know why."
Now, thanks to that masterful driving job -- and despite a 25th-place finish in the season-opening Daytona 500 -- Biffle is fifth in the standings, trailing leader Busch by just 67 points.
Biffle gave car owner Jack Roush his first NASCAR title when he won the truck championship in 2000, and added the Busch championship two years later. Now, Biffle would like nothing better than to present his boss a third straight Cup title.
Matt Kenseth gave Roush his first in 2003.
"I've learned a lot about myself and the way you have to race to win in Nextel Cup," said Biffle, who has been in some trouble on the track by being overly aggressive. "I really think we've got everything we need to be contenders.
"I think Jack gives us everything we need. Now we just have to put it together and make it happen."
Trying to be first
It wouldn't surprise crew chief Doug Richert if Biffle becomes the first driver to win titles in all three of NASCAR's top touring circuits.
"I really feel this team is ready," Richert said. "The team has matured, and we've figured out what we need to give Greg for him to win."
Roush, who also fields Cup cars for Busch, Kenseth, Mark Martin and promising newcomer Carl Edwards, has stood behind Biffle even when the driver made disparaging remarks about the team last year.
"There has never been any doubt about his talent," said Roush, who signed Biffle sight unseen after a recommendation from former NASCAR champion Benny Parsons. "He has the ability to do just about anything he wants in this sport, 0 everyone else figure that one out."
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