there are four NASCAR Championship Covers for TV Guide this week: Matt Kenseth, Brian Vickers, Travis Kvapil and Cup rookie of the year Jamie McMurray. See newstands for the issue which are on sale now. AND Four Collector’s Covers with This Season’s Nascar Champions Distributed In Portions of Country; Other Areas to Receive The Simple Life Cover. The story: GROWING UP FAST (pg.42) In the high stakes world of NASCAR, prevailing wisdom has traditionally held that experience made drivers better suited to a title run. But this year, a crop of young champs, including Winston Cup winner Matt Kenseth and Winston Cup Rookie of the Year Jamie McMurray, is turning that maxim on its head. Still, championships require a driver who has at least learned the mature lesson of consistency. Kenseth, who posted only one victory in 2003, finished close to the front in enough races to walk off with the title. “Before [2003] started, I thought, given the kind of year we had in [2002]-winning the most races but being inconsistent-that we would learn enough as a team to still be competitive but to be more consistent,” he tells TV Guide. “On bad days, instead of me messing up and going in the sandtrap at Watkins Glen and finishing 40th when we had a Top 3 car, finish eight if that’s the highest you can go with it. Don’t go past your limits.”(TV Guide PR)(12-4-2003)
