Now that the future at Roush Fenway is becoming more clear, we can begin to look at the other RFR drivers awaiting their fates. If the #99 seat was vacated, it was assumed that Trevor Bayne or Ricky Stenhouse Jr. would be in line to fill it. But since that now won’t happen, Bayne and Stenhouse’s futures are unclear. USA Today’s Nate Ryan wrote yesterday that Bayne expects to run a similar schedule next season as he ran in 2011. And Stenhouse told ESPN’s David Newton that there is no current definitive plan for him next season, but that he’d like to run another full NNS schedule and possibly Cup races for Richard Petty Motorsports (which has room to expand). With these two young drivers in the pipeline, RFR looks to be in a good position. But the situation begs the question, who’s the better Cup prospect?
Looking over their young careers, the two drivers have very similar statistics. Stenhouse’s NNS numbers (two wins and more top five and top ten finishes) are a tick better than Bayne’s, but both of their average finishes are right near 16. Stenhouse only has one Cup start (11th at Charlotte) versus Bayne’s 12 starts. But outside of his Daytona 500 win, Bayne’s best finish is a 16th at Michigan. In a close decision, advantage Stenhouse in the performance department.
In saying that however, I think it’s important to point out that Bayne missed time this season due to illness, and he’s in his first season with crew chief Chris Andrews. Both have played a factor in his performance this season. Stenhouse on the other hand has had significantly more time with veteran crew chief Mike Kelley.
Being successful and having a long career at the Cup level isn’t just about performance though. Marketability is becoming ever more important in the era of tough to get sponsorship dollars. Bayne has a clear advantage over Stenhouse in this area. An emotional win in the famous #21 at the Daytona 500, the media opportunities that followed, and Bayne’s personality all contribute. Stenhouse isn’t as well known despite his success, and he isn’t anywhere near the fan favorite Bayne is. During driver introductions, Bayne’s cheers rival that of perennial most popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.
All things considered, I think it’s very difficult to say one driver has more potential than the other. They both have long, successful careers ahead of them. I’m curious though, if you were a team owner with one open Cup ride, who would you pick?
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I get it. Kimi Raikkonen is a Formula 1 champion and believes he should be racing with NASCAR’s best. If there is one thing race drivers are often not short on, it’s confidence in their ability. It’s commendable that he wants to move up as quickly as possible, but if Raikkonen really wants to succeed, he needs to slow down. One Truck Series test coupled with a 15th place finish in a truck race does not qualify one for the Nationwide Series. And at this pace, when is he expecting to make a Cup attempt? Kansas?
You certainly would have hoped that Raikkonen and his advisers did a little research before they started writing checks. There are numerous examples over the last several years of other open wheel drivers thinking they can make a NASCAR career happen, only to find out that driving in circles isn’t as easy as it looks. Jacques Villeneuve, Scott Speed, Dario Franchitti, and Patrick Carpentier are all examples of of guys who’ve come and gone. And it could be argued that all were brought along too quickly. Juan Pablo Montoya and AJ Allmendinger experienced similarly quick paths to NASCAR, but it took both several years to be able to run well, consistently. Hopefully Raikkonen isn’t on his way to being the next flame out.
It’s ridiculous to think that a guy like Raikkonen would be able to come in and immediately be competitive against guys who’ve been on circle tracks their entire lives. I’m fully aware of Raikkonen’s pedigree, and his immense talent behind the wheel, but it takes a completely different skill set to be successful in a stock car. Not only that, but it would appear the young Fin isn’t even aware of NASCAR’s rules. Crew chief Rick Ren had to explain the “lucky dog” rule to him mid-race last Friday night.
I don’t want this post to come off as me hatin’ on Kimi. Worldwide interest is great for the sport, and drivers like Raikkonen open up NASCAR to new fans. I think it also helps NASCAR when guys from around the world want to come race here. It does nothing but add to NASCAR’s legitimacy. And how cool would it be to see a guy put a Cup Series championship on his resume next to his F1 title? Raikkonen could be the first. But it won’t happen if his development is rushed.
A few years back I heard a story about an open wheel driver I won’t name. In an early test session in his career, this driver supposedly told his guys over the radio that stock car racing was “child’s play.” Needless to say, he would find out later that this wasn’t the case. Hopefully Raikkonen isn’t under a similar delusion. He’s got plenty of talent and the resources to be here for a long time, but Kimi just needs to give himself the chance to learn how to be successful.
It’s always nice for the teams when we get to this part of the schedule, because with all three series racing in Charlotte, it means most get to sleep in their own beds. But a crowded weekend schedule, along with a trip to Iowa for the Nationwide cars, means some will have a very busy couple of days.
As we’ve talked about here many times before, there are some individuals and some full crews that pit race cars across multiple series. A few do it within their own companies, and others pit cars for many different race teams. You’d think Charlotte races would make for an easier weekend, but that isn’t necessarily the case.
Consider this example. The five guys that pit Trevor Bayne’s Cup car are also the same guys that pit Carl Edwards’ NNS ride. With their commitments between both cars, they will be pitting race cars four straight days. The Daytona 500 win made Bayne eligible for the All Star race, and his crew eligible for the Pit Crew Challenge. So his guys will spend Thursday at Time Warner Cable Arena for the Challenge. Then, they will head out to Charlotte Motor Speedway on Friday because qualifying for the All Star race includes that all important pit stop. On Saturday, the team will be busy working the All Star race. And they will close out their weekend with a nice short trip out to Iowa to pit Edwards’ Mustang on Sunday. Whew, I’m tired for them.
Besides this group, there are other guys and crews who will work Friday night’s Truck race, Saturday’s All Star race or Showdown, and then fly out to Iowa for the NNS race. The backup teams for the likes of Red Bull Racing and Hendrick Motorsports will have weekends similar to this. And many of these guys will be right back to their shop or other jobs on Monday morning.
Thanks to weekends like this, it isn’t uncommon for some guys to pit race cars in 70+ races a year. It can be extremely grueling and tough on the body over the course of a 10 month season. But for those that are willing to hustle, there is experience to be had and some nice money to be made.
If you’ve been a TNI reader for a while, you know that both Journo and myself are big fans of the yearly Pit Crew Challenge. Each year, during the All Star race week, the best 24 pit crews do battle at Charlotte’s Time Warner Cable Arena for bragging rights and some serious cash. The event gives fans the opportunity to see up close what the pit crews do, and it gives faces to the normally helmeted and anonymous crew guys. At only $15 a ticket, it’s also probably one of the best event values in NASCAR. And besides the action, there are always a ton of drivers, crew chiefs, and other NASCAR personalities in attendance.
The format for this season’s competition is the same as it’s been in previous years, with the jackman, front guys, rear guys, and gas man all doing their jobs on individual cars. Once their job is complete, the teams then must race to push their team’s car across the finish line. Penalties are issued for things like loose or missing lugnuts and incomplete gas fills.
To be eligible for the challenge, teams must meet these requirements:
All teams currently qualified for the 2011 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, which includes NASCAR Sprint Cup race winners from 2010 and 2011, NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race winners of the past 10 years and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champions of the past 10 years who are active drivers and have competed in at least one Series event during the 2010 or 2011 season. Also eligible is the 2010 NSPCC winner. If there are no new event winners, the remaining unfilled positions will become available to the car owners ranked highest in the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Owner point standings as of May 18, 2011, who are not otherwise eligible for this event.
Currently locked into the field are the pit crews for David Reutimann, Jamie McMurray, Kasey Kahne, Mark Martin, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, Trevor Bayne, Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer, Ryan Newman, Juan Pablo Montoya, Jimmie Johnson, Regan Smith, and Carl Edwards.
With one race to go before the rest of the field is officially set, there are currently five open slots to be filled. They go to the highest teams in the owners standings not already eligible, which would add the crews of Dale Earnhardt Jr., A.J. Allmendinger, Paul Menard, David Ragan, and Martin Truex Jr. to the mix. Things could certainly change though, as a win by a driver not currently locked in would drop the open slots to four. And the 27, 6, and 56 all have a slim margin over those on the outside looking in.
Starting today (Monday as I’m writing this post) and running through Wednesday, teams will spend time practicing for the challenge on the actual setup that will be used for the event. With some nice prize money at stake, you can be sure the teams will well prepared come next Thursday night.
For more information on the 2011 Sprint Pit Crew Challenge and to buy tickets, visit www.pitcrewchallenge.com.
Shortly after Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 at Talladega, Dan Bell (VP of Communications for FOX Sports) tweeted that it was “one of the best races in NASCAR history.” With a four wide finish that saw Jimmie Johnson win by 0.002 seconds, it certainly was one of the best finishes ever. But while the two car drafts create a ton of lead changes, and a level of unpredictability not seen anywhere else, I’m not sure we can really call the race as a whole a great one.
I know there are a lot of you out there who are going to disagree with me, but from where I was sitting on Sunday, I didn’t think the first 177 laps of this race were all that great. Positions on track change lap by lap just based on who has the most momentum at that point, and any race strategy is pretty much pointless. A duo can go from the front to the back, and back again very quickly. It makes for a lot of passing, but it’s almost pointless. After seeing a few races with the tandem drafting, these races just doesn’t seem as exciting to me. I’m certainly not a fan of the “big one,” but I liked the old style of superspeedway racing better. The three wide, ten rows deep, white knuckle racing was more fun to watch, IMHO.
With all that said, I’m wondering if we can really call a race great or “one of the best in NASCAR history” if the first 177 laps were so-so, and the last 11 were good, including a spectacular race to the line. Shouldn’t the entire race be exciting and fun to watch to be able to deem it great?
In these cases, I’m wondering if the explanation could be as simple as we only remember what happened at the very end of a race. The result was so great that we forget how not great the rest of the action was. We are blinded by an insane four wide, paint swapping, door to door, all out mad dash to the finish.
As we head into an off weekend for the Cup Series (don’t forget about the Trucks and NNS at Nashville!) I do want to say that this season is playing out as one of the most interesting in recent memory. No driver or small group of drivers has emerged as clear favorites, and we’ve had 7 different winners in eight races. It’s been fun to watch. Bring on Richmond!
The opening weekend of the 2011 NASCAR season is in the books. We saw spectacular finishes, a lot of action, and even some controversy. So from Friday’s wild Truck Series race, all the way through Sunday’s incredible finale, was Daytona what you’d hoped for?
After Thursday’s Duel races, I can’t lie, I was afraid we might be in for a very boring 500. The tandem drafting created a completely new style of superspeedway racing, and there really was no telling what kind of finish we’d see. But if Saturday’s Nationwide Series race was any indication, we were going to be in for a treat on Sunday.
The Truck Series races at superspeedways are always full of drama and action, and the Friday night premiere did not disappoint. We saw our first close finish of the weekend with Michael Waltrip just sneaking by Elliott Sadler for the win, and we also had our first controversy. It was discovered after the race that the spoiler on Waltrip’s truck had laid down, due to a part malfunction. NASCAR is taking the pieces back to the R&D center, and if any penalties are levied, expect them to be announced Tuesday.
Saturday’s NNS race kept the streak of close finishes going, with T0ny Stewart beating Clint Bowyer back to the line by only a few thousandths of a second. And while Cup drivers dominated the show, it’s nice to see that the current top five in NNS points is Landon Cassill, Reed Sorenson, Jason Leffler, Ricky Stenhouse, and Trevor Bayne.
As for the Daytona 500, it was a shame that we had so many wrecked race cars, but the finish was unbelievable. It was fantastic watching the #21, with a retro paint scheme, go to victory lane with young Trevor Bayne at the wheel. The Wood Brothers have so much history in the sport, and it was fun to watch that team celebrate a Daytona 500 win and add another chapter to their story.
Who’s ready for Phoenix?!
I didn’t have one idea that I wanted to focus on with my last blog post before the 2011 season gets under way this week, so instead I’ve got a bunch of mini topics to touch on. Feel free to comment on any or all of them.
New Points System I’ve been asked by a few people what my opinion is of the new points system NASCAR has instituted for this season, and I’ve got to say, I don’t really care. It seems on initial inspection that it isn’t a ton different then the old system, and I really don’t believe it will change the way teams race. Teams will still try like hell to win races, and when they can’t, they will do whatever is necessary to get the best possible finish they can. You will also still see teams try and get their race cars back on track after a wreck in order to ride around and get as many points as they can. The mindset won’t change. So I guess if the new system makes things easier for the fans, cool, but other than that, I don’t care.
Final Pit Procedure Thoughts We’ve talked quite a bit around here about the new pit road procedures with the elimination of the catch can position, but I just wanted to offer a few final points. I encourage you to really pay attention to pit stops at Daytona, because you will definitely see some differing techniques among the teams. I also wouldn’t be surprised if it appears as though one or two teams use a system that works better than the others, and for the other teams to follow suit shortly. It will be kind of a “monkey see, monkey do” situation once the teams get a chance to scout each other. These changes will also have a significant impact on pit strategy and what adjustments will get made. It’s a whole new ball game for crew chiefs and engineers now, and I think there is a much larger emphasis now on the decisions they make during the races. You will see a lot more races decided based on pit strategies – at least in the short run.
Important Season For Many Drivers, Teams, and Sponsors There are quite a few drivers and sponsors this season that have contracts that will be expiring after Homestead in November. Lee Spencer from FoxSports.com recently had a bit up about all the Cup drivers who are in the final year of their contracts in 2011 (see it here). This really could be a year that we look back on and say that this was the year that made or broke driver X or team Y. There will be a lot of pressure on those drivers and teams to put in solid performances every week in order to help secure their futures. With the economy continuing to a be a big factor with sponsorships, these teams don’t want to give these companies any reason to either switch to another race team, or pull out completely. It will certainly be an interesting story line to watch.
Nationwide Series Changes I’m really curious to see how the 2011 season unfolds for the Nationwide Series after the championship eligibility changes were made. Will it really help bring the series back to being a developmental series, or will the Cup drivers continue to dominate regardless? We haven’t had a solid Cup rookie class in a couple of years, and the deterioration of the Nationwide Series has certainly played a part in that. In order to keep the talent coffers full of new young drivers, it’s vital that the NNS get back to being a place where these kids can learn how to race.
Championship Predictions We don’t normally do a ton of predictions around here, because they are mostly useless, and it’s pretty much impossible to get them right. But with that said, I’m going to give you my picks on who I think will win each of the top three championships. In the Truck Series, I believe the addition of Jeff Hensley to KHI will pay off big and Ron H0rnaday will return to dominance. Hornaday ran really well last season, but just had a lot of bad luck. Expect that to change for 2011. For the Nationwide Series, I think the pick has to be Elliott Sadler. The Joe Gibbs Toyotas are pretty much unstoppable, but since neither Joey Logano nor Kyle Busch can win the championship, the balance shifts towards KHI. Sadler has the talent and will have the equipment to be a contender every week, and I don’t see any of the younger drivers putting it together for 34 races. And finally, the 2011 Cup Series champion will be Denny Hamlin. The bitter taste of being the runner up to Jimmie Johnson in 2010 will be serious motivation for this team to take the next step, and with Hamlin being 100% healthy this season, he will put it together and unseat the 48 bunch.
The off season has ended, and teams will head to Daytona this week. The next time you hear from me, we’ll have our first race winner (even if it is an exhibition race), and the front row will be set for the Daytona 500. Welcome to 2011!
Okay, so I fully understand that Roger Penske is a very smart guy. He’s been extremely successful as both a business man and a race team owner. I also know that I’m just a lowly tire changer, and if I really knew what I was talking about, I probably wouldn’t be here writing this blog post. But this situation with Sam Hornish is really starting to make me wonder about his decision making. Hornish has done absolutely nothing in his five years of NASCAR competition to suggest that he deserves another chance. And yet, Penske confirmed to Lee Spencer this weekend that Hornish will run in at least 10 Nationwide Series races this season.
Hornish’s skills in open wheel racing are irrefutable. He’s one of the most successful and decorated drivers in the history of the sport (3 championships, 19 wins, Indy 500 winner). Those skills however have not translated over to stock car racing. Since coming into NASCAR in 2006, Hornish has two top five and nine top ten finishes in 128 starts across the Truck, NNS, and Cup Series.
And now, instead of giving Justin Allgaier or Parker Kligerman more opportunities to learn and gain experience, Penske will waste at least 10 starts on a hopeless Hornish. For what?
Just so we are clear on what Penske let walk out the door when he released Allgaier, through two full years of NNS competition, Allgaier amassed one win, 11 top five, and 32 top ten finishes to go along with three poles and two top six points finishes. And Kligerman’s NNS statistics are also better when compared to Hornish’s, and he was in sub-par equipment on many occasions.
It is almost unfathomable to me to think that with two young, very talented drivers in the pipeline, Penske continues to give Hornish opportunities. I realize that Allgaier was let go due to the loss of Verizon as a sponsor, but there is no way that Hornish is more marketable to potential sponsors then Allgaier or Kligerman. Any name recognition Hornish had from his IndyCar days has long since been killed by his mediocre Cup career.
In a time when it appears as though we could go a few years (starting with the 2010 season) without a solid Cup rookie class, it’s very frustrating to watch talented young drivers get pushed aside for someone who has already proven they don’t have what it takes.
Mr. Penske, you’ve done a lot of great things in your career, but you’ve officially botched this one.
At the beginning of the last two years since we opened TNI, we’ve done a rumor scorecard for the previous season. (See the ’08 and ’09 scorecards here and here.) With 2010 now officially behind us, I figured it was time to grade ourselves and our reporting for the year. Before I do though, let me just point out that for 2008 and 2009, our record is 19-3-3 (19 correct, 3 wrong, 3 pushes). Here we go…
Marc Davis To Race At Vegas: Our first rumor of 2010 was that Marc Davis would run the NNS race at Las Vegas. The deal was 99% done we’d heard (he was even on the entry list), but ended up falling apart at the last minute. Davis didn’t end up racing. We’ll call it minus one for the Insiders.
Another New Crew Chief for Robby Gordon: We heard in March that after starting the season with Iain Watts as crew chief, newly hired “consultant” Larry Carter would be taking over as crew chief for RGM. We know for certain that he did call some races for the #7 team, but whether or not he was ever actually officially the crew chief is unclear. Carter was one of several to call a race for RGM in 2010. We’ll call this a push.
NASCAR Considering Eliminating Catch Can Man: With the Truck Series as a test bed, we told you early in April that NASCAR was considering eliminating the catch can position and having both the Cup and Nationwide Series use the new self-vented fuel can. Over the course of the year, NASCAR listened to feedback on the rule change from many in the sport, and in the end, the rule was implemented. The official announcement was made just a few short weeks ago. Plus one for the Insiders.
Front Row Penalized Over Bleeder Valves: After Pocono in June, we were the first to tell you about a possible penalty coming from NASCAR over Front Row Motorsports’ possible use of illegal bleeder valves. We heard a short time later that NASCAR was preparing to hand down their biggest penalty for cheating ever. In the end however, Front Row was penalized but it wasn’t a record sanction. Before the penalty was announced, one unsubstantiated rumor we’d heard was that FRM owner Bob Jenkins actually privately pleaded with NASCAR to levy a smaller fine and points penalty, as anything larger would have put him out of business completely. Obviously, there was no way of knowing if that was actually true or not. We’ll call this plus one, and minus one for the Insiders.
Billy Johnson To Drive for RFR at Watkins Glen: We were the first to tell you that GRAND-AM driver Billy Johnson would be making his NNS debut for Roush Fenway Racing at Watkins Glen. Johnson started ninth in RFR’s #6 Ford, but was caught up in a wreck and finished 36th. It was his only NNS race of 2010. Plus one for the Insiders.
TJ Bell Racing with “Green” Sponsor: In August, we reported that T.J. Bell would be racing at Darlington with a new sponsor, Liberty Tire Recycling. Bell went on to make two starts for MAKE Motorsports with Libery on board. Plus one for the Insiders.
Rumors After Watkins Glen: After the NNS race at the Glen, we reported via Twitter that we’d heard NASCAR had taken a box of lugnuts from Marcos Ambrose’s team that they suspected were illegal. The bit was confirmed later by Scene Daily’s Kenny Bruce, but NASCAR ultimately decided there was no issue. In the same post, we told you that Kevin Conway’s days at FRM were numbered. The team had grown tired of his poor performances, and they were looking to bring in another driver. Following denials by his sponsor Extenze (they emailed us specifically), it was announced five days later that Tony Raines would replace Conway for the race at Michigan. We also added that we’d heard Aric Almirola was a candidate for a Cup ride at RPM. Almirola didn’t end up at RPM, but it was reported by both Fox Sports and ESPN that he’d had discussions with the team. We’ll call that plus three for the Insiders.
Darnell & Kenseth To Run RFR NNS Cars: We told you late in August that Roush Fenway would add Erik Darnell and Matt Kenseth to the round robin of drivers getting starts in their NNS cars. Darnell got three starts (Richmond, Dover, Texas), and Kenseth ran at Atlanta to go with two NNS starts he made earlier in the year. Plus one for the Insiders.
RMM Shuts Down #81 Team: Following the Bristol Truck Series race, we told you that Randy Moss Motorsports was shutting down the #81 team of David Starr. RMM did indeed close down their second team, but Starr never missed a beat. After being let go from the #81, he moved over to SS-Green Light Racing and finished the season. RMM would later run a second truck for Tayler Malsam in four races. Plus one for the Insiders.
Turner Motorsports & Marc Davis: While we weren’t the first to report on the possible sale of Braun Racing to Steve Turner, we were the first to tell you it was a done deal and we gave you the first picture of what the new Turner Motorsports would look like. Todd Braun did end up selling his team, and the new Turner Motorsports will have three NCWTS teams and four NNS teams. They will also run Chevrolets. And after a failed attempt to race at Las Vegas earlier in the season, we told you that Marc Davis would be running for R3 Motorsports at Dover. Davis started 30th and finished 23rd. Plus two for the Insiders.
Johanna Long & Tayler Malsam to Trucks: In September, we reported that both Malsam and Long would be making attempts in the NCWTS race at Las Vegas. Both did race at Vegas, and they both ran more races towards the end of the season. Plus two for the Insiders.
Trevor Bayne To RFR: We were the first to report that Bayne to Roush Fenway was a done deal, and that his new team would run a fifth NNS car for him at Kansas in October. Bayne finished out the season with RFR, and is prepared to run a full NNS schedule in 2011, along with an unspecified number of Cup races. Plus one for the Insiders.
Josh Wise To Drive At Charlotte: Josh Wise spent 2010 driving for several different organizations, and we reported in October that he would race at Charlotte for a team backed by veteran tire changer D.J. Copp. Wise started 39th and finished 18th. Plus one for the Insiders.
KHI, Elliott Sadler, RFR Trucks: Later in October we heard that KHI was putting together the personnel for a second full time Nationwide Series team, and that Elliott Sadler may run some races for them. Both turned out to be true, as it was later announced that Sadler will run the full 2011 schedule for KHI with sponsorship from CitiFinancial. We also told you that there were rumors that Ron Hornaday was shopping for a new NCWTS ride. We’d heard he had conversations with several organizations, but he ended up re-signing with KHI. The last bit we gave you was that Roush Fenway was working on resurrecting their Truck Series program. This story has cooled way down since then, but there is still a small chance it could happen. I’ll give us plus one, a push, and leave the RFR bit as still pending.
Caitlin Shaw To Race At Phoenix: In November we told you about yet another female driver who would be racing in 2010. Caitlin Shaw, after making one start in 2009, returned to the Truck Series in a truck prepared by Mario Gosselin’s DGM Racing at Phoenix. She started 33rd and finished 30th. Plus one for the Insiders.
Skinner Out? Kvapil In?: Our most recent rumor for you, we reported that Mike Skinner was likely out at Randy Moss Motorsports, and that the team would replace him with Travis Kvapil. Skinner won’t talk, and no official announcement has come from the team, so we’ll leave this one pending.
As you can see, we had a busy year reporting on the happenings in NASCAR. Our scorecard for the year looks like this: we had 17 correct, two wrong, two pushes, and still have two rumors pending. Adding up all three seasons worth of news and rumors, that makes us 36-5-5. We prove yet again that if you hear it from us, odds are pretty good that it’s true. Our solid track record doesn’t do much to prove that we are who we say we are, but at the very least we are very well connected janitors…
There was a great piece done recently by Scene Daily’s Bob Pockrass about the Nationwide Series’ newest owner, Steve Turner. (We’ve also written previously about Turner.) Towards the end of 2010, Turner became the largest independent owner when he expanded his Truck Series operation to include four NNS teams that he acquired when he purchased Braun Racing. The SD piece and Turner’s recent dealings have me wondering if Turner Motorsports could be on track to being the next major NASCAR team.
Think about what Turner now has in place with his organization. He’s got several solid sponsorship deals (Great Clips, Dollar General, Monster Energy, ABF Freight, Brandt, and others), a stable of young and talented drivers (James Buescher, Brad Sweet, Justin Allgaier, Jason Leffler, Ricky Carmichael, Reed Sorenson), and plenty of good equipment. With the base Turner has built (and bought), it’s not hard to see the team possibly making the jump to Cup competition in the near future.
Of the drivers he has now, two already have Cup experience (Leffler and Sorenson), and if Allgaier continues to improve, there is no doubt that he could be a solid driver to build a Cup program with. Obviously funding would need to be secured, but remember that the new NNS COT isn’t much different then a Cup COT. And with their new relationships with equipment suppliers, a Cup team wouldn’t be a big leap.
I also want to point out the difference between Turner and some of the other new owners we’ve seen come into NASCAR recently. Remember that Turner has been doing this for a while. He didn’t come in with big pockets and immediately buy into a Cup operation. He started small and has owned teams in many lower racing series before moving into the NASCAR big leagues. He has a better idea than most what it takes to survive. And it appears he has the acumen and the resources to make it all work.
At this point, I’m sure Turner and his management team are focused on making the teams they have now successful. It will certainly be a challenge meshing his CWTS operation with what was Braun’s NNS operation and making it work. But if they are able, I don’t think it’s crazy to think that Turner could be on pace to be the next Joe Gibbs, Richard Childress, or Jack Roush.