Saturday Morning Quick Fix
- Yes, just a month and a half into the 2008 NASCAR season, here we are already talking about 2009 as it seems that the ever-so-dramatic Silly Season is once again creeping upon us. There’s been quite a buzz created with Richard Childress Racing announcing their addition of a fourth team next year in the Sprint Cup Series, and rumors have begun circulating instantly that Bobby LaBonte was the top candidate to drive that car next season. While it remains true that the 2000 Series Champion has yet to accept an offer of renewal from Petty Enterprises, LaBonte did state on Friday following qualifying that Petty was where he wanted to be driving next year, and that it was simply a matter of making it all work on paper. Other drivers that are without contracts currently for 2009 include Greg Biffle (Roush-Fenway Racing), Martin Truex Jr. (DEI), or even Jacques Villeneuve (Bill Davis Racing) who has yet to race this year due to lack of sponsorship. It’s also come to my attention that Tony Stewart (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Ryan Newman (Penske Racing) have yet to renew their contracts for next year as well.
(Click Here for more on that)
- Speaking of Greg Biffle, he and Roush-Fenway claim that they are about 90% done with their negotiations for a 2009 contract, and that securing long-term sponsorship appears to be one of the final pieces to put in place. Biffle has also suggested that even if this contract extension doesn’t happen, he doesn’t see a move to RCR as a viable option due to the fact that the team would be starting out without any owner points. Roush has also reported that they’re working on contract extensions with Carl Edwards and David Ragan as well. Following the 2009 season, Roush will be forced to cease operations on one of their five race teams due to a new mandate put in place by NASCAR.
- Michael McDowell has had quite an interesting first two weeks in the Sprint Cup Series. Last weekend at Martinsville he unintentionally held up the no. 31 Chevy Impala of Jeff Burton, setting Burton off in a rage following the race. During the course of the week, McDowell later called Burton on the phone and apologized. Burton seems to have been receptive of Michael’s apology, and this little bit of drama now appears to be in the past.
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. has announced that he will run a retro paint scheme at Darlington. The paint scheme will be modeled after the car driven by Darrell Waltrip in 1981-1982, and will be run as a one-time deal only.
(Click Here to view more on the story and a photo of the car)
- Though AJ Allmendinger was originally slated to be back in the seat of the no. 84 Red Bull Racing Toyota Camry at Phoenix on April 12th, the team has decided to push AJ’s return back to the following weekend at Talladega. Mike Skinner will continue driving the car until then.
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