IN SIGHT Gordon's post-qualifying pep talk. FOCUS: FERNANDO ALONSO Fernando Alonso's been billed as the next big thing in Formula One, and the 22-year-old Spaniard went a long way toward showing why by winning at the Hungaroring on Sunday. Alonso's stunning victory for Renault was huge for three reasons: 1, Alonso now is the youngest ever race winner in Formula One history; 2, Alonso is the first Spaniard to win an F1 Grand Prix; and 3, Renault earned its first victory since returning to F1 last season. "I have said it a lot this year, but this is the best day of my life," said Alonso, who has been on the podium this year but finally experienced the winner's champagne. For Alonso, it's a logical step in what he expects will one day lead to a Formula One driver's championship. He's a got a rock-star following in Spain, and he's only going to get bigger. Imagine when Alonso is the man to beat -- it might not happen in the next couple years, but it will before his career is done. What will be interesting is whether Alonso remains with Renault for the long haul or not. The team appears to be making huge strides in a short time; managing director Flavio Briatore intends to win sooner rather than later. "This win proves the work that our people in Viry-Châtillon and Enstone have accomplished," Briatore said. "The champagne tastes good: we will now work even harder to make sure the next win isn't too long coming." Hungary was even better for Renault as Jarno Trulli finished seventh, one spot ahead of five-time World Champion Michael Schumacher. If Renault can continue to raise its game, the Big Three of Ferrari, BMW and Mercedes will have some company. That could only be good for fans of F1. "I think this finally confirms the improvement the team has made this year, and the promise we have shown all season," Renault engineering director Pat Symonds said. "It is always good to win, but particularly so when it is done in such a dominant fashion, from pole." For his part, Alonso doesn't sound like he's plotting to leave Renault for a bigger, better ride. He's sitting in fifth-place with three races left, and only four points separate him from Ralf Schumacher. "Personally, I want to say a big thank you to the whole team, here at the track but also back at the factories in France and England," Alonso said. "I am proud to be racing for Renault: winning this for them, and becoming the first driver from my country to win a Grand Prix, is fantastic." PIT PASS Shirley Muldowney's made a career off of firsts. First female to earn an NHRA Top Fuel license. First and only woman to win a Top Fuel championship. First person to repeat as Top Fuel champ. Now, Muldowney and her trademark pink parachute are preparing for a last. At this weekend's Mac Tools U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis, Muldowney will make her final Nationals run. Muldowney, competing in six events in her 'Last Pass' season, has a special fondness for Indianapolis. "There is a lot of prestige along with winning Indy because people remember winning Indy more than winning other races," Muldowney said. "It's the biggest race. I think the history behind it makes it so important. Not every racer can say they have won it. I can say I have won it. There are racers who have won it several times as a driver like (Don) Prudhomme and (Don) Garlits." Muldowney said she's at peace with retirement -- but will miss some things. "I will miss driving the car and trying to make it happen, getting results, being on your game, seeing the guys smile when they get the numbers they are looking for," she said. "I'm going to miss the speed, the fan reaction -- I like all that." The two most pressing matters on the Winston Cup soap opera right now? If you found yourself muttering about the points system and Kurt Busch, give yourself a perfect score on this one-question quiz. And it's not necessarily in that order, as we witnessed last weekend in Bristol, Tenn. Busch was on everyone's mind -- before, during and after he won the Sharpie 500 before 160,000-plus fans at fully-charged Bristol Motor Speedway. Fans wore 'Free Jimmy' shirts, as if knuckle-dragger Jimmy Spencer were in jail or even that popular (when did he win last? 1994?) before 'The Punch.' The incident in Michigan has taken on a life of its own that has given us more to talk about than how Matt Kenseth has managed to run away with the Cup series points race despite just one victory. To rob from Martha Stewart, that's a good thing. A very good thing. Entering Bristol, Busch was all the buzz. We wondered what his face would look like -- is it hamburger? Can he see? Will he breathe in the humidity with his helmet on? We wondered what his demeanor would be like -- is his confidence shot? Will he weep in the media room? Could he possibly win? And what will the fans do? And we had all our answers play out dramatically -- hey, he looks OK. He seems chipper. His car's fast. Geez, Kurt just might win this thing. Sure, the fans are booing, but watch that No. 97 car put itself in Victory Lane. And so Busch won. And Kevin Harvick called him an idiot. Rubberhead. And worse. The only signs of Jimmy Spencer, now a NASCAR Nation legend, were written on the walls of Bristol Motor Speedway. The chaplain who travels with NASCAR said Busch and Spencer were good men, and that Spencer now wants to become a better man. No idea if Spencer sounded like Jack Nicholson in "As Good As It Gets," when his character Melvin tells Helen Hunt's character Carol, "You make me want to be a better man." But we can imagine it that way. Bobby Labonte made a strong point this past weekend when he said the incident, sparked in part by Busch's audio tape to his crew saying he was trying to flatten Spencer's fender in Michigan, will make everyone on the series step back for a moment and evaluate themselves. For Labonte, speaking only to a few reporters and not a full news conference with cameras and the world watching, made it clear that Busch was not from another planet with his comments. Fender scraping goes on in stock car racing. Always has. And it's not always unintentional. Even Busch has not retracted his statement, only saying that in the future he would be more careful in what he said both in his car and to the media. His message is clear: I'll keep racing the way I know it takes to win, but I'll shut up about it. Hey, he's learning. And that's progress. 'Don't tell' is the American motto. We don't care if someone cheats, so long as they don't get caught. Then, we despise them. Nor do we care if Busch moves his competition out of the way. Just don't gloat on the radio about it. As for whether the points should be changed, the other hot topic of the season, Labonte again was a voice of reason. "It seems like they're just talking about changing it now because of what (Matt) Kenseth is doing," Labonte said. "I don't agree necessarily with that. Nobody was talking about it last year" when Kenseth won five races but finished eighth. Point taken. EXHAUST FUMES Stock falls: It appeared Sam Hornish Jr. might be heading to the wild world of stock cars, but appearances were deceiving. The IRL's best hope remained planted in the open-wheel series, announcing his deal to replace retiring Gil de Ferran at Team Penske. Robin Miller writes how this is a logical move for everyone involved. And what beautiful news this was for the Indy Racing League. It kept its star out of the hands of the enticing NASCAR world, where ratings are to the moon and money flows like beer at a racetrack campground. And we're fine with all that. Really. But here's one wish, maybe for sometime in the future. We'd like to see Hornish (and Paul Tracy, for that matter) try their hand at Cup racing. Not that open wheel isn't fun, because it is. More beautiful to watch, even, than the stock cars. It's just that at Gas and Go, we crave the drama and the spotlight. And Winston Cup is where the on and off-track dramas are seen by everyone. Hornish would be a nice fit in that world, one way or the other. MAILBAG

What is the logic behind lining cars up double-file on restarts, with lapped cars clogging the inside line? It seems this is the cause of a number of accidents, as well as being unfair to the drivers from about third on back who have to negotiate around lapped cars while the leaders pull away. E.J. Pavsek Anchorage, Alaska Ahh, the level playing field. You are right, the lapped cars just get in the way. (We've written several times that single-file restarts should be used with 20 or 30 laps remaining, not just within 10 laps of the finish). But NASCAR wants to give those drivers a good chance at getting their laps back. There's also an issue of fairness to the lapped car. Imagine a driver who just lost his lap but is still running up near the leaders, a driver who is within striking distance of getting back on the lead lap. A caution if thrown and that driver is forced to start at the end of the field, where he'd be much closer to losing another lap than to getting his lap back. The lapped car shouldn't be penalized by a caution, but you are right -- currently the leaders are thrown under the proverbial bus by cautions and the lapped traffic the ensuing restart forces them to navigate. It's a tough dilemma. Check out user comments and our replies regarding the Spencer-Busch fiasco. Got your own questions about what's happening in the pits? Ask away, and we'll answer a question or two in the next Gas&Go. Name: E-mail address: City, state: Your comment: OVERHEARD Kurt Busch On spinning out Sterling Marlin. "I look like an idiot again." Kevin Harvick On why Kurt Busch is unloved. "He's an idiot." Helio Castroneves On holding off Hornish at Nazareth. "It's tough for a driver when you have Sam Hornish behind you. Never look back."

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