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Happy 4th of July, everyone! Along with celebrating America’s independence, since it just so happens to have fallen on a Friday this year, that means you’re also treated to a “special” edition of “Loose in Turn Three”. Along with me as always are Bruce Simmons from “Bruce’s Bits & Pieces”, and, of course, Charlie Turner from “On Pit Row”.

Earlier this week, Chip Ganassi announced that due to sponsorship woes, he was being forced to cease operations on his no. 40 operation, laying off 71 employees in the process and also putting NASCAR rookie, Dario Franchitti, out of a ride for the remainder of the season.

Ganassi has been fortunate to maintain sponsorship on all of his cars to this point in 2008, but there have been several other teams that have struggled with similar situations all season long. Yates Racing is perhaps the most publicized of these stories, running the no. 28 car of Travis Kvapil without a primary sponsor for most of the year, and the no. 38 of David Gilliland’s contract with freecreditreport.com is only for a limited number of races. BAM Racing also had to shut down operations earlier in the year, Bill Davis Racing shoved Jacques Villeneuve out of the series before he ever even got started, and Michael Waltrip Racing is known to have troubles on the horizon.

Q: With the recent folding of Chip Ganassi’s #40 operation due to lack of sponsorship, is this a trend we can continue to expect in NASCAR with other teams that have struggled with sponsorship … teams like Yates Racing? 

TZ: I think it is. The economy’s really turned everything upside down, even in NASCAR. Many of NASCAR’s long-term sponsors are starting to see a substantial decrease in profits, which means that they’ve got to start cutting down on their budget in areas like professional sports. Then, on top of that, you’ve got some of the top-tier teams such as Childress and Gibbs with plans on expanding their organizations with an additional car, and before ya know it, there’s just not enough water in the kiddie pool anymore.

Bruce:  If the team isn’t performing, the hood sponsor isn’t getting it’s $10 mil of advertising exposure, so yea, we just may see other teams lose sponsors.  BAM was trying something interesting with their sponsor packages but then they jumped manufacturers and then suddenly took a break.  I guess the sponsor program wasn’t the hit they were hoping it to be.

Charlie:  Every indication is that other teams are on the brink of closing shop. Ganassi is one of the organizations that you would think to be stable. Chip may have just missed on a hunch that in Dario he could catch the Montoya lightning again. Regardless they failed with that car.  I have a feeling that Yates will survive, but Waltrip could shrink by a car.

Franchitti has stated that he’d like to remain in NASCAR, and Chip Ganassi has since offered Dario the full-time seat in his Nationwide Series entry. No decisions have been made as to what they’ll do from here, but sources indicate that the two plan to meet and discuss Dario’s future going forward.

the Rest of the Discussion:
- Do You Think Kurt Busch Giving up his car points to Hornish hurt the team overall? (Bruce’s Bits & Pieces)

- What will become of Dale Earnhardt Inc? (On Pit Row)

Post from: EveryJoe

With Ganassi Folding the #40 Team, What Will Become of Some of the Others?

Ahh, yes, it’s another Friday, and Spring is in the air (though it’s starting to feel a bit like Summer!). But, it’s the end of the week, nonetheless, and we all know what that means. I’m joined here by Bruce Simmons from Bruce’s NASCAR Bits & Pieces, and the infamous Charlie Turner from On Pit Row for our weekly rendition of “Loose in Turn Three”.

This week here at Do You NASCAR, we’re going to take a look at the Toyota lineup and determine if anyone other than Joe Gibbs Racing is going to win them some races this year. We’re also going to play Jury on Denny Hamlin’s involvement in the huge accident this past weekend at Dover over at Bruce’s website, and we’re going to reveal some of the most underrated drivers in NASCAR over at On Pit Row.

So, sit back and buckle up tight. Three questions, three voices, and three different answer … we’re about to get Loose in Turn Three!

Q: Joe Gibbs Racing has won four times in the Sprint Cup Series this season, but in two years, they are the only Toyota team to win a race in Cup racing. Will a non-JGR driver reach Victory Lane in 2008?

TZ: Ya know, with the way that Kyle Busch and the rest of the Gibbs cars have been running, sometimes I wonder if another team at all will win again this year! In all seriousness, though, I think the dominance of the JGR cars has really overshadowed just how much the rest of these guys have really improved as organizations. After failing to qualify for all of those races in 2007, now they’ve got a bunch of drivers up in the top-35 in owner points, and they’ve run strong at a bunch of tracks. There’s one guy that’s really caught my eye, though, and that of course is Brian Vickers. I do in fact think he’ll win this year, and I think it will happen at either Lowe’s or Talladega in the Fall.

Charlie: Probably not.  JGR is Toyota’s “A” Team in Cup. Only Chevy has more than one “A” Team. Ford has only one. Dodge may not have even one. I think that Brian Vickers is capable of a win.  Dave Blaney is fast enough if all the stars line up somewhere like Pocono or Michigan. But the odds are long. Waltrips teams are more worried about top 30 finishes than wins.

Bruce:  I think JGR has the Toyota win column locked up.  I like Vickers also for a win, but reasonably, I only think he’ll get there via a lucky stroke of the fuel mileage window or weather god.  Toyota made a good deal, no matter what it was or how expensive it was to get their nameplate in the circle of winners..  Not to mention big name drivers associated with them now.

Follow the rest of this discussion:
- What happened with Denny Hamlin in the Dover wreck?

- Who is the most under-rated driver in NASCAR and how is he over-looked relative to his talent/value?

*Credit photo to Newscom.

Post from: EveryJoe

Loose in Turn Three: Is Anyone Else Driving These Toyotas?

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The period for exclusive negotiation powers for Office Depot to resign as the primary sponsor for the no. 99 Roush-Fenway Ford Fushion driven by Carl Edwards has officially expired. The original deal that Office Depot had with the team was a four-year deal that ended at the same time as Edwards’ contract with Roush Racing was to come to a close, which was at the end of this year. Edwards recently renewed his contract with Roush for another three years, but a sponsor for 2009 has yet to be named.

The initial speculation was that UPS would make a bid for Edwards, as their contract with Michael Waltrip Racing comes to an end at the conclusion of this year as well. They are certainly not out of contention to put their logo on the hood on one of racing’s hottest young stars, but several sources are now reporting that AFLAC may be emerging as the new frontrunner in the deal. AFLAC currently sponsors Edwards’ car in 13 of the 36 points races throughout the year, and the company appears to have an outstanding working relationship with Jack Roush and his affiliates. AFLAC spokesmen are currently not acknowledging the recent rumors, stating that they are very pleased with their current deal, but right now they want to stay focused on the current program they have in place.

Mindy Kramer, Public Director for Office Depot, on the other hand claims that they are still pursuing a renegotiation in their bid for Edwards and has cited a few reasons why a deal has not yet been made. “When you’re talking about a significant investment, it’s difficult to get those things done in a short period of time,” she said. “Carl was not signed until almost the very end of our period of exclusive talks, so that was a hinderance to us being able to have some meaninful discussions with the team when he may have ended up somewhere else.”

Office Depot is rumored to be looking at several other race teams as well, as they have gone on record by stating that they do not wish to exit the car sponsorship aspect of the sport. One of the teams heavily rumored includes the no. 44 car at MWR driven by David Reutimann – the car currently sponsored by UPS.

Post from: EveryJoe

AFLAC Becomes New Frontrunner for Edwards Deal

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Ahh yes, what would April be without speculation for next year’s silly season? The latest in the slew of ongoing rumors and negotiations in our dramatic world that we call NASCAR has fallen on the lap of non-other than Roush-Fenway Racing driver, Carl Edwards.

Edwards’ contract with car owner the no. 99 Ford Fusion, Jack Roush, expires at the end of the season. There have not yet been any indications that Carl is looking elsewhere for a seat, and experts expect Edwards to resign with the team by the end of the year. At the same time, however, Office Depot’s sponsorship contract on the 99 car also expires at the end of this year, and rumors are surfacing that the price tag for renewal may have just gone up to a price that they’re just not comfortable with.

Three years ago Office Depot signed a deal with Roush Racing that had them spouting out about $12 million to $14 million a year. Sources are saying that Roush is now reportedly looking to make somewhere in the neighborhood of $22 million to $24 million off of Edwards. With Office Depot’s stock dropping by over $25 per share over the last calendar year, that is looking to be well out of their price range.

One sponsor that doesn’t seem too shy about spending the dough, however, will coincidentally be up for grabs at the end of the year. UPS’s 2-year deal with Michael Waltrip Racing is up at the end of the year, and Carl Edwards is reported to be their number one option. All indications are that if Office Depot hasn’t finalized a deal with Roush by the end of their exclusive negotiating period in mid-May, then UPS will be hot on the hunt after Cousin Carl.

In Other News:
- Clint Bowyer lost control of his no. 07 Chevy Impala on Tuesday while demonstrating a burnout at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. The demonstration was in preparation for NASCAR’s first-ever Pennzoil Burnout Contest prior to the May 17th All-Star Race held at Lowe’s. The event will feature five drivers performing a burnout, with the winner to be determined by how fast they can begin from a standing start and complete a full drag racing-style, tire smoking burnout and two doughnuts before reaching the finish box. The winner will receive $10,000 to be donated to the charity of his choice. The event is being compared to MLB’s Home Run Derby or the NBA’s Slam Dunk Contest.

- Ryan Newman is reportedly unhappy with his engine department at Penske Racing after blowing up during the last Sprint Cup Series event in Phoenix. The incident isn’t the first engine failure that Newman has suffered this season, and the trend has sent him plummeting in the standings since winning the opening Daytona 500 back in February.

Post from: EveryJoe

Express Delivery for Carl Edwards

Has Joe Gibbs Racing positioned themselves as “the team to beat” in NASCAR?

TZ – I’ve never hid the fact that I’m an avid Tony Stewart fan, and I’m constantly pulling for the 20 car to get out front each and every race. I came into the ‘08 season unsure of what to expect from the JGR camp after making the jump to the Toyota brand, and quite honestly, I questioned their ability to compete for the championship in their inaugral series with them. Since then, they’ve come out of the gate dominating the laps led category and winning two of the first six points races. That said, they’ve also had several parts failures between Hamlin’s water pump issue and Kyle Busch breaking gears at Martinsville. I think that the season’s just too long, and the Toyota program isn’t quite where it needs to be just yet to sustain the entire Cup season for any of the Gibbs boys to bring home the big paycheck after Homestead. There’s just too many question marks still lingering in my mind.

Bruce -  Pshaw!  I can’t tell if they’re the team to beat, the team to ignore while Jack rants about irrelevant things or the team everyone is going to wait for in the race to fall apart.  Like you Tim, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I didn’t think a power horse like Gibbs would match up with Toyota without good reason, and visa versa!  Yet I can’t help but wonder about karma.  IE: The bad luck they’ve had up until Denny’s win.  We have a mystery sway bar that they wait until March to make noise about and probably won’t be seeking legal action now (why not?) and then there’s the oil pan cover and their decision to not fight the infraction.  (why not?)  And then they have two of the hottest mouths in Cup with Stewart and Ky Busch.  I assume they doubled their PR department to keep up with both of them.  As far as the paycheck at the end of the season:  They’ll get over this sophomore hump and get back on track.. they only have to get into the top 12 by the 27th race to have a shot at the cup and I think that’s doable for them except Ky Busch who keeps taking chances when he’s already got the race covered!  (Don’t get me started on 28% of the field being able to contend for the Cup!)

Charlie – Joe Gibbs Racing is one of the five best teams in NASCAR and the fact that they won their second race of 2008 at Martinsville confirms that and the fact that Toyota is a factor right now, despite only a bit over a year in cup. But is JGR the team to beat? No. Hendrick Motorsports is still the team to beat. The fact that both Gibbs and Roush have been able to do that a couple times only shows me that the Hendrick haters have some hope this year. But it’s too early to anoint a new “chosen team”. Give it until the second Daytona race at least.

Those highly touted 2008 rookies haven’t done much so far. Who is your favorite after six races to be Rooki of the Year?

Charlie – I picked Sam Hornish Jr. at the start and I am going to stick with my pick. Sam has had some disappointing finishes since Daytona, but so have the rest of the contenders. Look for Hornish to run well at Texas and maybe catch a break from the stock car gods for a change. But keep an eye on Michael McDowell. He has a longer resume than most fans know and he ran the whole ARCA Re/Max Series last year – winning four races and the ROY for that circuit.

TZ – When faced with this question two months ago, there was no doubt in my mind that Dario Franchitti would be a lock for Rookie of the Year in 2008, but from what I’ve seen in the first six races, I’d have to say that he’s turned out to be possibly the least impressive driver in this year’s rookie class. Hornish was impressive at Daytona and hasn’t done much since then, but I think he takes this one completely by default. McDowell might be decent, but at this point, I wouldn’t put my money on anyone in the MWR garage. Regan Smith could potentially be the breakout star in this group, but again, nothing’s safe when you’re talking about DEI. Carpentier’s the guy that I think could compete with Hornish if he had been afforded the luxury of guaranteed starts in the first five races like Sam was, but that wasn’t the case.

Bruce – It is definitely a lack luster bunch.  I think Regan Smith might pull it out in the long run.  Hornish is just blowing his chances as he keeps twisting up sheet metal like he did last year.  McDowell sure had an impressive first start at Martinsville.. even if it did tick off the front runners.

Do You Think Dale Jr will make the Chase this year?

Bruce: Judging from the fact that he’s got 5 top 10’s in 6 races, seems toalways be up at the front at some point, I think the only thing they have to figure out is how to get used to always being up towards the front These days.

Charlie: Yeah, of course I think he’s going to make. I also think that he should make it – since he’s with the best team and has the advantage of a nice first even races. But that doesn’t mean he’s GOING to make the Chase. Things happen. A couple bad finishes and people start talking about you like you can’t drive at all. Ask Casey Mears or Jamie McMurray. Junior has had slumps before – and they weren’t all the fault of his DEI team. Earnhardt runs a different race line than nearly anyone else – always flirting with disaster in the high line, against the wall. When it works, he’s fast. When it doesn’t work – and the new car is squirrelier than the old one – he wrecks. He’ll make the Chase if his tactics work often enough.

TZ: Charlie, I think you bring up an absolutely great point with the fact that Junior runs a completely different line than the rest of the field more often than not, and I agree, once in awhile that can be his huge downfall. Here’s my thing, though … for a few years now, I’ve firmly believed that Dale Junior is one of the most overrated drivers on the track. That’s not to say that he’s a bad driver or that he’ll never be able to win a Cup championship, I’m just saying that he’s not “the Intimidator,” and he never will be. That said, he was able to compete for a spot in the Chase last year even through all of the turmoil and controversy that he put himself in, and he should really have no problem cracking the top twelve with a Hendrick motor under the hood. He’s more than capable to make the Chase, and I believe he’s shown that so far, even if it has only been six races.

Post from: EveryJoe

Loose in Turn 3

-  After removing their hands from each other’s throats for a couple of weeks, the Toyota / Roush-Fenway Racing picked right back up this week when ESPN publicized comments that Jack Roush made earlier in the month in regards to Toyota winding up with a  missing Roush part. Jack has allegated that they had a sway bar go missing last September at Dover, and that it was later found with an unnamed Toyota team. Toyota personnel have stated that it the team in question did in fact wind up with the missing part, but that it was completely unintentional and immediately returned to Roush Racing. While Jack is contemplating seeking legal action against the team, NASCAR has stated that they will not get involved in the incident, citing that it’s a team squabble and that those types of things need to be sorted out amongst the teams. When ESPN asked Dale Earnhardt Jr. for his opinion on the matter, he stated that if it were intentional, then whoever took the part should have their hard card revoked, meaning that they wouldn’t be allowed in the garage. Jeff Gordon, on the other hand, felt that Roush was blowing the situation completely out of proportion and that these types of things happen all the time – sometimes intentional and sometimes not. Roush was infuriated that NASCAR refused to take action.

-  Gillett Evernham Motorsports announced that there would be a possibility that Elliott Sadler could not compete in this Sunday’s Goody’s Cool Orange 500 in Martinsville due to a lower-back injury he sustained during the Sprint Cup Series’ off-week. Details of how the injury occurred are a bit sketchy, but it’s believed to have resulted from Elliott’s daily routine on Wednesday afternoon, and later on it was aggravated further from a sporting activity of sorts. The team brought Dennis Setzer to the first Cup practice session on Friday morning, but it was Elliott who qualified the no. 19 McDonald’s Dodge Charger 25th. As of right now, all plans seem to indicate that Sadler will at the least attempt to make the start on Sunday, but Setzer will be on stand-by either way.

-  Robby Gordon was rather outspoken – like only Robby can do – back in January when the Dakar Rally was cancelled due to terrorist threats. He made some very outlandish statements insinuating that the threats and the deaths incurred by the French tourists were blown way out of proportion. Vanguard Integrity Professionals – Gordon’s scheduled sponsor for the Rally – was none too pleased with Robby’s comments, and have since severed all ties with Robby Gordon Motorsports. After making a public statement regarding the split, it has also been learned that Vanguard has filed a lawsuit for $1.5 million against Gordon in an effort to recoup all of the money they had given to Gordon prior to the scheduled event. Robby Gordon has responded by claiming that Vanguard has no legal rights to terminated the contract, and on March 5th a US District Court denied Vanguards motion for a restraining order to prohibit Gordon from using their logo in his NASCAR ventures.

-  NASCAR has denied Michael Waltrip Racing’s request to swap the owner points between the 00 and 88 teams. Before the season started, MWR announced that upon Dale Jarrett’s retirement after the first five points races that David Reutimann – then the driver of the 00 car – would replace him, and that the 00 seat would be filled by rookie Michael McDowell. Reutimann is currently 27th in points, while Jarrett ended the day in Bristol 34th in points, and a mere 16-points away from falling outside of the top-35. Due to NASCAR denying the team’s request, Reutimann now sits 34th in owner points, so the team could have a panic on their hands should something happen to go awry in Martinsville. NASCAR stated that this situation does not meet the criteria that they’re usually looking for when approached about a potential points swapping.

-  Starting with this weekend’s race in Martinsville, BAM Racing will begin equipping their no. 49 car driven by Ken Schrader with Bill Davis Racing’s Toyota-powered engines. The team is currently under contract with GEM to receive their engines from Gillett Evernham Motorsports, but GEM has since then granted them permission to pursue Toyotas. If qualifying is of any indication, then the move is paying off thus far as Schrader qualified 7th for Sunday’s race. He has currently qualified for only two of the five races run.

- Tony Stewart is attempting to prove that every split mili-second counts on the racetrack, which is why he’s spent the majority of the off-week looking into methods of how he can make his no. 20 Toyota Camry carry a lighter load, thus resulting in faster speeds. He started last Monday by getting his body waxed on live radio, and has followed it up this week by “getting his ears lowered” and chopping the mullet. This should officially end any rumors that Smoke was letting it grow out in preparation for a future sponsorship from “Locks of Love.”

Post from: EveryJoe

Saturday Morning Quick Fix

After experiencing some success in the open-wheel market, Team Red Bull decided to purge into NASCAR late in the 2006 season. Except, it wasn’t exactly a “purge”, as they failed to qualify in the three races they attempted. Shaking off the disappointment from their trial runs in ’06, the team looked ahead towards the 2007 season after purchasing the old Penske race shop in Mooresville, NC and aligning with the Toyota brand as they, too, made their debut in the NASCAR [then] Nextel  Cup Series.

With Brian Vickers driving the #83 car and Cup Series rookie AJ Allmendinger behind the wheel of the #84, the 2007 campaign got off to a horrid start as both failed to qualify for the transfer spots for the Daytona 500. The following week, however, Vickers did successfully qualify at California and finished the race in 10th. It wasn’t until the fifth race of the season that Allmendinger finally qualified.

Between Red Bull’s two race teams, they successfully qualified for only 40 of their possible 72 combined points races, which netted TRB only one top five and five top ten finishes – all via the efforts of Vickers. Neither of the cars finished in the top 35 in owner points, either, meaning that 2008 will start off much like ’07 with both cars having to qualify for every race based on time. Much like their fellow Toyota teams in Michael Waltrip Racing and Bill Davis Racing, though, they will receive a much-needed boost in their efforts with addition of Joe Gibbs’ team to the mix. If the engine packages and the cars hold up the way I think they will, I believe Vickers is a solid enough driver to get his car somewhere in the top 25 in points and take a little bit of the pressure off of this race team.

Cup Series Roster:

83: Brian Vickers – The 24-year-old native of North Carolina got off to a bit of a slower start in the Cup Series than most people had expected recording only four top ten’s and no top five’s in his first full season in the Cup in ‘04. He finally broke out in 2005, though, while racing for Hendrick Motorsports in a season that brought him five top-five’s and ten top-ten’s resulting in a 17th place points finish. The following year he maintained his momentum with another five top-five’s and recording his first Cup victory at Talladega when he took teammate Jimmie Johnson out of the race in the closing laps to secure his victory. He also moved up another two spots in the standings that year as well. Following 2006, though, Vickers made the curious decision to leave Hendrick Motorsports and join Team Red Bull and the Toyota venture as they both made their break into the Cup Series. The transition was a bit rough, as Vickers qualified for only 23 of the 36 races last season and recorded only five top-ten finishes – only one more than in his rookie season. The main goal for Vickers this season will be to get his car qualified for the first five races of the season and then getting his ride inside the top 35 in points to secure future starts, regardless of qualifying. Once he does that, much of the burden should be lifted from his shoulders and we could possibly see Vickers become rather racey once again. Look for him to finish in the top 25 in points this year.

84: AJ Allmendinger – The former Champ Car Series driver didn’t make the transition to NASCAR until last year – his rookie season – and, it was a rather miserable transition at that. He qualified in only 17 of the 36 races, not garnering his first start until five races into the season. He also failed to make the best out of those starts by not only not recording a single top ten finish, but accumulating an overall average finish of just over 31 and finishing the year 43rd in points. His success in the Champ Car Series was a little up and down, and he really hasn’t proven that he’s ready for NASCAR’s highest level. My honest pre-season prediction for Allmendinger is that he will be released by TRB before the end of the season, replacing him with either someone running a full-time Nationwide schedule or one of these mediocre vets still in search of a ride.

Driver Roster: C-
Off-Season: D
2008 Outlook: D+

Post from: EveryJoe

Season Preview: Team Red Bull

It’s not a huge secret that 2007 didn’t exactly provide the Michael Waltrip Racing team with the debut season in Cup racing that they had hoped for, but 2008 could and should be much brighter for the organization as a whole.  This year the relief they’ve been searching for so badly will come in the form of Joe Gibbs Racing. With Toyota entering the Cup Series as a “rookie” in their own rights, teaming up with the young teams of MWR and Team Red Bull and attempting to even that out with the lackluster team of Bill Davis Racing, let’s just say that it was a formula destined to go sour coming out of the gates. Adding Gibbs to the mixture should help level things out for the Toyota organization, and right now, Michael Waltrip and his associates in the garage are down on their knees praying that’s the case. In 2007, the organization fielded three teams – the same as it will this year. If you do the math, you’ll quickly learn that with three teams, that’s a potential of 108 total race starts … yet, MWR managed to qualify their cars only 64 times,  which means that they successfully qualified their rides in only 59% of their opportunities. Oh, and when they did manage to qualify for the races, they didn’t do much with it, as the team didn’t even crack the top 5 one time throughout the entire season. In fact, the highlight of the season for MWR was the 2 top ten finishes, courtesy of Waltrip himself.

Basically, if this team doesn’t get it together in 2008, the next few years could find MWR having a very tough time finding any sponsorship help out there, leaving the organization with a ton of financial woes. In addition to Gibbs joining the Toyota roster, though, MWR could have a couple more bright spots to look at. For starters, Dale Jarrett will be gone after the first five races. I know there’s still a lot of DJ fans out there, but on a realistic level, the former champ doesn’t appear to have enough gas left in the tank anymore to really contribute anything to this race team. With him out of the way, it’ll give the young Michael McDowell the opportunity to step up and provide some more fresh talent to the team when he takes over the 00 ride. Meanwhile, the 44 crew should be left with a bit more potential gain for their efforts as the reigns of the no. 44 UPS Toyota Camri will fall in the lap of David Reutimann.  MWR is definitely a question mark heading into 2008, so I wouldn’t get my hopes up just yet for a breakout season from any of their drivers, but I think you should definitely look for some improvement from all three of their teams this year.

Cup Series Roster

No. 00: Michael McDowell – The rookie is sure to get off to a very slow start his first couple of races since he won’t have the opportunity to compete until Dale Jarrett moves out of the way of the no. 44 when he retires following Bristol.  That gives every other rookie on the tack 5 races to get some seat time under their belts, but even worse … it gives every veteran driver on the track 5 races to get back into their groove and figure a few more things out with the COT. It’s going to take some time, so I wouldn’t make any plans of adding him to your fantasy rosters just yet, but by the last quarter of the season you may be able to pick him up at quite a bargain.

No. 44: David Reutimann – He’s coming off of a very poor and lackluster rookie season, but with the way the other Toyota’s ran in 2007, he actually has every excuse he needs to put last year behind him and block it from his memory. Moving into the no. 44 ride after DJ retires should be a huge boost for him because UPS is a huge sponsor for NASCAR, which means that team probably has the funding they need to overcome the obstacles that the combination of debuting both Toyota and the COT last year threw at them. He may have only qualified for 26 races last year in the 00, but that’s actually more than any other driver at MWR. He also finished the year 39th in points, which is a far cry from anything considered successful, but again – he was the highest ranked driver at MWR. His biggest challenge is going to be getting his car qualified for the first five events since he won’t have any provisionals to work with during that period, but at the same time he’s going to need DJ to qualify for those races as well. Otherwise a very odd scenario could present itself … if Reutimann runs well during those five races but DJ doesn’t, he could find himself well within the top 35 in driver points, yet well outside the top 35 in owner points … meaning he would still have the daunting task of qualifying for the following races on time alone.

No. 55: Michael Waltrip – He’s got to step up this year, no question about it. As the owner of these race teams and a guy that’s actually at times been able to compete for a seat at the awards banquet in New York, he has got to step up and prove himself as the leader. He managed to qualify for only 14 races last season, producing 2 top ten finishes. That’s following a season in which he had NO top ten’s. He has got to get himself back to the basics and prove that he can still win races – or at least compete for a win – without the assistance of a Dale Earnhardt Jr. draft. Maybe it’d help if he spent less time in front of a camera and more time behind the wheel.

Driver Roster: D+
Off-Season: C+
2008 Outlook: C

Post from: EveryJoe

Season Preview: Michael Waltrip Racing

So where is Busch headed? Yates, Evernham, Childress, Ganassi, Ginn, Waltrip, and DEI are all interested in talking with him, and they’ve all said that they’re interested because he has excellent driving skills. Unfortunately, save for Ganassi, none of the other owners listed have the moxie to keep the reins on Busch, and his behavior would continue to spiral out of control.

Jack Rousch, who had Busch under contract when he was 16, said he’s “not interested in revisiting the relationship”. Gee, ya think Rousch knows something about the Busch brothers that the others don’t?

Post from: EveryJoe

Where Is Kyle Busch Headed?

What I don’t understand is why Waltrip was picked to actually run the entire organization. Yes, Waltrip is great at marketing his team and sponsors, week-in and week-out, and this has always been his strength. He’s always come across as somewhat goofy,but he’s everyman’s type of racer, and that sells in the greater NASCAR markets. But this hardly makes him qualified to manage and run an entire business organization. He’s been racing for 22 years in NASCAR and has 4 wins to his name, all when he was with Dale Earnhardt, Inc., and all on restrictor plate races. So he doesn’t bring a winning record to Toyota either.

And you have to wonder why didn’t Waltrip go to Rick Hendrick, Robert Yates, Joe Gibbs, and Richard Childress to pick their brains as much as possible. People make great organizations. Not technology. This has been true of successful businesses for ions and its no different in auto racing. If I’m Toyota, I give Waltrip to the July Daytona race to turn things around for at least one of his cup teams, and if not, then I’m looking for someone else.

Post from: EveryJoe

Can Waltrip Survive?