That’s Racin’ ranks the top-40 Winston Cup teams for the 2002 season, based on overall team performance:

1 Tony Stewart (car No. 20): Earned fewer points per race than any modern-era champion with 133.3 ” but it was enough to win the title. Preseason ranking: 2.

2 Mark Martin (car No. 6): Junior Johnson never won a championship, either, and he also was a heck of a driver. Preseason ranking: 10.

3 Kurt Busch (car No. 97): He was 433 points back on Labor Day and finished 159 down. He just ran out of time. Preseason ranking: 21.

4 (tie) Ryan Newman (car No. 12) and Jimmie Johnson (car No. 48): NASCAR says Newman is Rookie of the Year. We still think it was a dead heat. Preseason ranking: 20 and 36 respectively.

6 Matt Kenseth (car No. 17): Gets the nod as the best of the rest because this team got to Victory Lane five times. Preseason ranking: 17.

7 Jeff Gordon (car No. 24): Bunched three wins and eked out a fourth place finish in points, but didn’t measure up to expectations. Preseason ranking: 1.

8 Rusty Wallace (car No. 2): Winless for the first time since 1986. At 46, the question becomes: Will he win again? Preseason ranking: 11.

9 Jamie McMurray/Sterling Marlin (car No. 40): Marlin’s injury derailed a title bid, but McMurray flashed brilliance as his sub. Preseason ranking: 9.

10 Dale Jarrett (car No. 88): He, Ricky Rudd and Bill Elliott gave the 45-and-older set five victories in 2002. Preseason ranking: 6.

11 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (car No. 8): Team took a giant step backward in ’02. Legacy-wise, that’s the wrong direction. Preseason ranking: 3.

12 Bill Elliott (car No. 9): This team earned Dodge’s highest points finish (13th) this year. Good for them but bad for Dodge. Preseason ranking: 16.

Tony Stewart celebrates his first Winston Cup Series championship after clinching the title with an 18th-place finish at the 2002 Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway last Sunday in Homestead, Fla.

13 Ricky Rudd (car No. 28): The fact this team finished in the top 10 in points as it fell apart shows what an odd year it was. Preseason ranking: 7.

14 Jeff Burton (car No. 99): We felt this team would be fourth overall in ’02. It wound up the fourth Roush team. Preseason ranking: 4.

15 Bobby Labonte (car No. 18): New crew chief Michael McSwain must slow the 2000 Cup champ’s freefall. Preseason ranking: 5.

16 Ward Burton (car No. 22): Finished 25th in final points, but winning the Daytona 500 has to count for something. Preseason ranking: 15.

17 Johnny Benson (car No. 10): Benson’s injuries slowed progress, but his long overdue first victory sure was sweet. Preseason ranking: 12.

18 Michael Waltrip (car No. 15): Doubled his career win total at Daytona in July and saved his job with midyear spurt. Preseason ranking: 33.

19 Jeff Green (car No. 30): Intramural points champion at Richard Childress Racing. That about sums it up. Preseason ranking: 27.

20 (tied) Dave Blaney (car No. 77) and Ricky Craven (car No. 32): The two best single-car teams in the sport. Fat lot of good it does them, however. Preseason ranking: 26 and 19 respectively.

22 Kevin Harvick (car No. 29): He did win a race at Chicago, but didn’t do much else. Sophomore slump, perhaps? Preseason ranking: 8.

23 Robby Gordon (car No. 31): Completed a full season with RCR and finished 20th in points ” something to build on. Preseason ranking: 32.

24 Kyle Petty (car No. 45): Better, by leaps and bounds, after a couple of awful years. Next step up will be tough. Preseason ranking: 40.

25 Elliott Sadler (car No. 21): Could be Jimmie Johnson of ’03 at Robert Yates Racing. Or, he may be Kenny Irwin. Preseason ranking: 29.

Kurt Busch (car No. 97) and Dale Jarrett race side by side during the 2002 EA Sports 500.

26 Joe Nemechek/Jerry Nadeau (car No. 25): Can Nemechek be the guy to return Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 25 car to its former glory? Preseason ranking: 24.

27 John Andretti (car No. 43): Loyalty to the Pettys aside, he’s got to be getting tired of running badly. One last chance? Preseason ranking: 30.

28 Steve Park/Kenny Wallace (car No. 1): This was a lost year. Park returned too soon. Team needs early success to fend off rumor sharks. Preseason ranking: 18.

29 Kenny Wallace/Hut Stricklin (car No. 23): Wallace had some decent runs late in the year after taking reins of ride from Stricklin. Preseason ranking: 38.

30 Jeremy Mayfield (car No. 19): Something didn’t click with this team, and if it’s not fixed soon, heads could roll. Preseason ranking: 14.

31 Terry Labonte (car No. 5): There have been very few signs of life from this team for the past two seasons now. Preseason ranking: 35.

32 Mike Skinner (car No. 4): This is a single-car team fighting an uphill battle at every turn. Only one top-10 finish all year. Preseason ranking: 28.

33 Jimmy Spencer (car No. 41): Team and driver go separate ways after high preseason hopes simply didn’t pan out. Preseason ranking: 13.

34 Mike Wallace/Stacy Compton (car No. 14): Ended a less-than-memorable year on high note with a respectable 11th place finish at Homestead. Preseason ranking: 39.

35 Bobby Hamilton (car No. 55): Team and driver both face uncertain futures after a largely unproductive season. Preseason ranking: 23.

36 Todd Bodine (car No. 26): Team owner Travis Carter is beating the sponsorship bushes to keep the team’s heart beating. Preseason ranking: 34.

37 Various drivers (car No. 44): Probably won’t be a full-time Cup team in 2003. That’s probably a good idea. Preseason ranking: Not ranked.

38 Ken Schrader (car No. 36): Zero top-10 finishes and nine did-not-finishes for the season. That’s just not good. Preseason ranking: 25.

39 Jason Leffler/Casey Atwood (car No. 7): Glad to have 2002 in the books. Atwood’s ouster may open up this ride for Spencer. Preseason ranking: 31.

40 Brett Bodine (car No. 11): Ran out of provisionals in final weeks of the season and missed four straight races. Preseason ranking: 37.