There is a new sponsor and a couple of Nextel Cup ringers.

But Sunday night’s 31st annual Banknorth Oxford 250, formerly the Oxford True Value Oxford 250, should be just as unpredictable as ever.

Oxford Plains Speedway regulars say there is just one preferred racing groove now so even the likes of defending Nextel Cup points champion Matt Kenseth and contender Kurt Busch will have their hands full.

Kenseth and Busch are taking advantage of a rare weekend off in the Nextel Cup series.

“They won’t have a huge advantage. They’ll be just like us,” said Topsham’s Billy Whorff Jr.

“Their Cup experience isn’t going to do them any good here,” said Hebron’s Alan Wilson.

“It’s going to be a rough race,” predicted Mike Maietta Jr. of South Portland. “Fenders are going to be flying.

“Before they paved the track [October, 2002], there were two fast grooves. Now there’s one super fast groove and one fast groove. So everyone is shoving people out of the way. There will be a lot of bump-and-runs,” said Maietta Jr.

The winner receives $25,000 and drivers also receive $100 for every lap they lead. That makes for aggressive driving.

“Guys want the lap money so they won’t give anyone a break,” said Wilson.

That means drivers running the outside groove will have their problems wedging themselves into the inside groove.

“You used to need to be three-tenths of a second faster to pass on the outside groove. Now you’ve got to be five-tenths quicker,” said Whorff.

“You can’t run in the second groove,” said 2001 Oxford 250 winner Gary Drew of Otisfield. “It started to come around but then we had a hard rain and there hasn’t been much grip [on the outside groove] the last couple of weeks.”

However, with several races preceding the Banknorth Oxford 250, including heat races, an ISMA supermodified feature and an ACT event, it could narrow the disparity between the grip on the two grooves.

“I don’t see it unless there’s some kind of issue with the inside groove,” said Mercer’s Jeff Taylor, who estimated that 15-20 cars he and his staff built at Distance Racing Products in Fairfield will be in the field.

Taylor will also enter the race.

Turner’s Ben Rowe is the defending champ and he said the heat-race draw is the “biggest thing.”

The starting positions for the six 20-lap heat races are selected by draw and just the top four finishers in each race qualifies. Then there are three consolation races and, again, the top four in each qualifies. The top non-qualifiers in the first set of heat races start up front in the consolation races.

There is one more race, the 50-lap last-chance qualifier, and just the winner earns a spot in the 250.

Wilson won the last-chance qualifier in 2002 to earn the 37th spot in the starting grid before finishing fourth and pocketing $6,000.

The heat races will begin at 2 p.m.

Whorff Jr. has already qualified by winning the New England Dodge Dealers 100 on May 1 but he still must run the heat races. The highest-finishing OPS regular in Saturday night’s’ ACT Dodge Tour 100 will also earn a provisional spot but they must also try to qualify.

There will be 39 qualifiers and track owner and president Bill Ryan can also award extra provisionals.

Rowe said one of the primary keys to winning is “starting up front.”

Rowe started on the pole last year.

“Preparation is the key,” said Whorff. “You can’t have any faulty parts. You have to go through your car and make sure all the equipment is good.”

“You need to survive the first 200 laps,” concurred Scarborough’s Ryan Moore, the Busch North rookie of the year who will be racing in a pro stock car for the first time in two years.

Pit strategy will be another important factor.

“The guys who won the last two years [Rowe and Dixfield’s Robbins] took four tires on their pit stops,” said Maietta.

Rowe said being the defending champ doesn’t put any added pressure on him.

In fact, he said there is “less pressure” than there was before last year’s race now that he has won an Oxford 250.

“I can just go out and have fun,” said Rowe.

Rowe intends to drive the Chevy Monte Carlo he took to victory lane last year.

It had been his backup car this year because he has a new Monte Carlo. He had been saving it for the Oxford 250 but had to use it last week at Thompson International Speedway when he wrecked his new car in practice.

He came from the back of the pack to finish second.

Rowe has two wins on the PASS tour this season to bring his total to 16 over the last 21/2 seasons, including the Oxford 250. The defending two-time PASS points champ won nine races in 2003.

“We’ve had a good year so far,” said Rowe. “We’ve tried a lot of different stuff. Some of it has worked and some hasn’t.”

Maine drivers have won the last eight Banknorth Oxford 250s after just two had claimed the previous 11.

PAST CHAMPIONS

Past Oxford 250 champions with prize money:

1974 ? Joey Kourafas, $4,500

1975 ? Dave Dion, $4,500

1976 ? Butch Lindley, $6,375

1977 ? Don Biederman, $6,000

1978 ? Bob Pressley, $7,050

1979 ? Tom Rosati, $10,000

1980 ? Geoff Bodine, $11,200

1981 ? Geoff Bodine, $21,400

1982 ? Mike Barry, $16,000

1983 ? Tommy Ellis, $21,150

1984 ? Mike Rowe, $26,475

1985 ? Dave Dion $26,600

1986 ? Chuck Bown, $28,950

1987 ? Jamie Aube, $31,100

1988 ? Dick McCabe, $34,100

1989 ? Jamie Aube, $35,075

1990 ? Chuck Bown, $51,872

1991 ? Ricky Craven, $50,025

1992 ? Dave Dion, $37,150

1993 ? Junior Hanley, $40,475

1994 ? Derek Lynch, $33,975

1995 ? Dave Whitlock, $52,150

1996 ? Larry Gelinas, $50,000

1997 ? Mike Rowe, $39,800

1998 ? Ralph Nason, $46,400

1999 ? Ralph Nason, $42,700

2000 ? Ralph Nason, $31,900

2001 ? Gary Drew, $35,400

2002 ? Scott Robbins, $36,900

2003 ? Ben Rowe, $34,700