Ricky Craven has had his share of ups and downs.

But the NASCAR Winston Cup driver from Newburgh now finds himself at a crossroads.

By signing on with the second-year Precision Preparation Inc. Motorsports team, Craven ensured that he would be sitting in a viable Winston Cup car every weekend.

It marks the first time since he resigned under fire from the Hendrick Motorsports team in 1998 that Craven has been with a team that has a well-established primary sponsor: Tide. Budweiser was the Hendrick sponsor on Craven’s Chevy.

It means Ricky Craven finally controls his own destiny.

Craven has had some bad luck this season as a broken shock mount, a dead battery and a bump from Dale Earnhardt Jr. have left him with bottom-third finishes.

But he has also made mistakes.

He also took full responsibility for his last-place finish at Pocono (Pa.) because he missed a shift and it killed his engine.

Craven needs this ride.

Driving for undermanned teams like SBIII and Midwest Transit, his previous two rides, limits his ability to showcase his talents.

It would take a miracle to win.

He didn’t have the opportunity to test or tune the car as much or as effectively as the teams with solid financial sponsorship.

So now it is up to him.

The sign of a top-notch driver is the ability to guide their car to a finish that exceeds the car’s capabilities.

He has shown that ability from time to time.

Now he must string together a run of top-20 finishes.

He hasn’t done so yet this season.

His finishes after his four top-15 showings have been 40th, 27th, 41st and 35th.

Craven has shown he can run with the Labontes, Gordons and Stewarts as his Ford engines have been competitive with their engines. Now, he needs to show he can be consistent such as Labonte, Gordon and Stewart.

Craven had four top-15 finishes through his first 15 races and his fourth-place finish at the MBNA Platinum 400 at Dover Downs International Speedway on June 3 and fifth-place showing at the Dura Lube 400 at North Carolina Speedway on Feb. 25 were the best for PPI Motorsports in its first year and a half on the circuit.

But there were also two 41st-place finishes and two 43rds.

There have definitely been growing pains.

Those are expected.

This is a new driver with a new team.

Young teams in every sport tend to be inconsistent.

They’ll pull off some stunning performances but they’ll also make costly mistakes.

In auto racing, many of those mistakes are made during pit stops as was the case earlier this season.

As the team grows and matures, it will make fewer mistakes and will find ways to maximize its potential.

The 35th-to-43rd-place finishes start disappearing.

Top 20s become commonplace and, eventually, top-10s become more.

But drivers and crew chiefs are like general managers and coaches in other sports.

They are ultimately accountable for the team’s performance.

It is easier to fire a coach, general manager, crew chief or driver than it is to fire the entire team.

Craven has a top-notch owner in Cal Wells III. He is extremely competitive, intelligent and hands-on.

“He is very determined,” says Craven, who is equally determined.

Wells knows it takes at least two years to build a quality race team and has set the foundation.

Craven knows he is fortunate to land such a deal and now it is up to him to justify Wells’ faith in him.

It is also up to him to prove to the Winston Cup world that he shouldn’t have been released by Hendrick and by the fledgling SBIII Motorsports team.

At age 35, Craven is reaching his prime. He figures the next five to six years should be his best.

The horrific crashes at Talladega and Texas Motor Speedway in 1996 and 1997 and his four-month layoff due to post-concussion syndrome-inner ear problem are a distant memory.

He is racing as aggressively as ever and has maneuvered his way to the front in most of his races.

He looks like the same driver who finished 19th in points in 1997.

Driving for financially challenged teams like SBIII and Midwest Transit Co. taught him how to make the most out of a difficult situation. He had three top-20 finishes in the last five of his 16 races for Midwest Transit a year ago.

Whenever you talk to him these days, he says he’s having fun again. He wants to make this work and believes this to be the perfect fit for him.

He gave up his Ricky Craven Busch Grand National Motorsports program to concentrate on this opportunity.

Longtime friend Andy Santerre of Cherryfield, who races on the Busch Grand National tour, said the Tide ride is a great opportunity for Craven.

“Tide is one of the best-known and more powerful sponsors in Winston Cup,” said Santerre. “This has brought him back to the level he was at with [Hendrick].

“The team is definitely making progress. The car is getting better and the people are getting better. It takes three or four years to be competitive week in and week out at the Winston Cup level. They have a good chemistry and Ricky is healthy and has his confidence back,” added Santerre.

Craven, the 1995 Winston Cup Rookie of the Year and 1992 Busch Grand National Rookie of the Year has always been a hands-on driver and he is being allowed that opportunity here.

Through June 21, he was 28th in points. His average qualifying position was 23.6 and his average finish was 25.6.

Finishing in the top 20 in points has been one of the goals mentioned by Wells and Craven.

That is attainable.

He has 21 races remaining and he and his team have 15 races under their belts.

The next 21 races could determine his future.

“Next year will be a big year if Ricky returns. You’ll see major improvement,” predicted Santerre.