He has those jaunty sideburns that make him look a bit, you know, colorful. Menard has been criticized because his father is wealthy and has supported his son's racing efforts.

Just who out there would pass that up?

In truth, Menard is quite modest, as reflected in the fact that he is quite terse. His answers to questions are seldom expansive, and he often speaks in sentences that aren't complete. Examples from his press conference after winning Sunday's Brickyard 400:

"Can't change people's opinions. ... Can't control it. ... Definitely for him (his dad). ... Sitting up in a suite for the inaugural one (Brickyard 400 in 1994). ... Saw Rick Mast win the pole. ... Passed a couple cars. ... Just started trying to maintain some kind of lap time being easy on the throttle, easy off, earlier than normal, easy on."

You get the point.

But anyone who thinks Paul Menard is some international playboy, jetting around on his daddy's money, has got it wrong. John Menard was able to make sure his son got the best equipment, but it was Paul who proved he could do the job. Some find Indy boring. Others complain about how hard it is to see. No one doubts it takes considerable ability to win here.

Richard Childress didn't put Menard in his No. 27 Chevy just because of sponsorship from the Menard's chain of home-improvement warehouses. It didn't hurt, though.

"I caught a lot of flak back early last year when we decided to go with four teams," said Childress. "I've been watching Paul ever since he won the Nationwide race (Milwaukee, 2006). He doesn't wear equipment out. He's consistent. He's really good. Got a cool head on him in all situations.

"I knew if the right situation came along, we'd win. To get 'Slugger' (Labbe, Menard's crew chief) to come over, John Menard support us ... that was a big jump going in on a fourth team."

Menard bounced around, from Dale Earnhardt Inc. in 2007-08 and to Richard Petty Motorsports in 2009-10. It took Childress to provide him with what proved to be a winning combination in one of NASCAR's premier races.