CHANGES IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT.

Byline: TIM HADDOCK Motor Sports

In the case of NASCAR next season, it will be hard to follow the races if you don't know the faces.

Although there aren't a lot of new faces rising to the ranks of Winston Cup racing, there are quite a few who are changing teams and will be in new cars when the green flag drops on Daytona in February.

Among the most notable are Jimmy Spencer and Jeremy Mayfield. Spencer leaves the No. 26 Kmart Ford and will be driving the No. 41 Target Dodge, formerly the No. 01 driven by Jason Leffler. This is about a good a match as egg and nog, Rudolph and red, and kisses and mistletoe. The crafty Spencer will be hooking up with Chip Ganassi, co-owner of the No. 40 team for veteran racer Sterling Marlin, who won two races in 2001. Ganassi is also the CART owner of the Target team and has won championships with drivers Jimmy Vasser, Alex Zanardi and Juan Montoya.

Mayfield, let go in midseason by Team Penske from the No. 12 Mobil One Ford, will take over the No. 19 Dodge Dealers Dodge for Evernham Motorsports. The winner of the 2000 NAPA Auto Parts 500 at California Speedway is also making a smart move, teaming with Ray Evernham, the former crew chief for four-time Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon.

Evernham will field two teams next season and part of a third, keeping Bill Elliott's No. 9 Dodge team intact. Casey Atwood, who drove the No. 19 Dodge in 2001, is moving to the No. 7 Dodge in a team which will be run jointly between Evernham and Ultra Motorsports.

Richard Childress is adding a couple of new faces to the full-time ranks of Winston Cup racing. Robby Gordon, who won the 2001 season finale at New Hampshire, will take over full-time for the No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet, previously driven by Mike Skinner. Any betting man would give Gordon, who drove for three NASCAR teams, in the Indianapolis 500 and in the Baja 1,000 off-road race last year, no more than 12 races before he is replaced. Here's hoping he can make fools of the betting men.

Jeff Green, who competed this year for Childress in a handful of Winston Cup events, including at California Speedway, will be driving the No. 30 AOL Chevy. After winning the NASCAR Busch Grand National championship in 2000, Green, who has made unsuccessful jumps to Winston Cup before, said he would never do it again unless the right guy called. Apparently Childress was the right guy.

As NASCAR kismet would have it, Skinner lands in the No. 4 Kodak Chevy, which was Gordon's ride at the start of the 2001 season. Gordon, from Orange, lasted all of five races before he was ousted and replaced with Kevin LePage.

Skinner could meet the same fate as Gordon if he puts up the same kind of results for Morgan-McClure Racing as he did for Childress. In other words, give Skinner five races before he is replaced with Bobby Hamilton Jr.

Mike Wallace, who filled in for the injured Steve Park in the No. 1 Pennzoil Chevy, will continue as driver for the Dale Earnhardt Inc. team.

In what should be the battle for Raybestos Rookie of the Year, Busch Series stars Jimmie Johnson of El Cajon and Ryan Newman will be making a full go in 2002 after competing in a handful of Winston Cup events last year. Johnson will be driving the No. 48 Lowe's Chevy for Hendrick Motorsports in a team partially owned by Jeff Gordon. Newman will be in the No. 02 Alltel Ford for Penske Racing.

In moves of little significance, Hut Stricklin and Hills Bros. have moved from the No. 90 Junie Donlavey Ford to the No. 23 Dodge team owned by Bill Davis. He joins Ward Burton, driver of the No. 22 Caterpillar Dodge, at Bill Davis Racing, and replaces Dave Blaney, who has moved to the No. 77 Jasper Engines & Transmission Ford, replacing Robert Pressley.

There are a handful of teams looking for drivers. They are Andy Petree Racing for the No. 33 Chevy, Melling Racing for the No. 92 Dodge and A.J. Foyt Racing for the No. 14 Conseco Pontiac, driven formerly by Saugus Speedway and two-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday Jr. of Palmdale.