Childress expects to decide on RCR's fourth driver by summer's end
JOLIET, Ill. – Team owner Richard Childress says that Richard Childress Racing has not decided on a driver for its fourth Sprint Cup team in 2009, but he expects an announcement by the end of the summer.
“Some of the drivers we’re talking to are still under contract up through even August, but we’re hoping to get something announced by Aug. 15,” Childress said Thursday at Chicagoland Speedway. “There are still some good players out there for that position.”
Childress did not elaborate on who those players are nor did he say whether UPS, which is thought to possibly be leaving the car of Michael Waltrip Racing’s David Reutimann for RCR at the end of 2008, was in talks with his company.
Jack Daniel's, which serves as the primary sponsor on the No. 07 Chevrolet of RCR’s Clint Bowyer, will return for at least one more season, according to Childress.
“Right now I can’t comment on nothing about UPS because I’m not involved right now with all of that,” Childress said.
Childress was happy to talk about Tony Stewart, however, and the driver’s new partnership with the team to be known as Stewart-Haas Racing. It was announced on Thursday that Stewart would take a 50 percent ownership stake in the team next season and drive one of the team’s cars.
Stewart announced Wednesday that he would leave his current team at Joe Gibbs Racing at the end of 2008.
“I think it can be good because I think a lot of people will just watch this even if they’re not a fan to just see what happens to Tony and his companies,” Childress said. “There’s going to people pulling for him to fail and there’s going to be a lot of us pulling for him to succeed. I think it’s going to be good for the sport because everybody’s going to be watching to see what happens with Tony Stewart and his new venture.”
Childress, a former owner/driver in NASCAR’s top series who drove his final race in 1981, expressed confidence that Stewart can succeed in his new role, providing he has the right personnel.
“He’s got a lot better financial backing today than we had in the days when the independents ran,” Childress said. “He’s got his dirt cars and his sprint cars. He has an understanding of owning a team. But to come to this level, it takes a huge commitment from an owner’s standpoint to put the time in it. I think that he’ll do fine.
“The biggest thing he’s got to do is, it’s about people. He’s got the sponsorship, he has the talent. It’s about the people he’s going to surround himself with.”
As for what, if any effect, Stewart’s attempts to bring another Chevrolet team to prominence might have on the manufacturer’s allocation of resources, Childress expressed little concern.
“[Chevrolet has] been rewarded with a lot of results from the sport in sales,” Childress said. “It’s kind of like going back into the Great Depression. Companies that backed off from advertising, they’re not the top companies in the world today. Companies that went in there and advertised and did their thing in tough times, they’re still here today and doing good. …
“At General Motors, that’s one of the positives. We work really close together with Hendrick [Motorsports] and DEI, and now, Tony, I’m sure he’s going to be in our key partners. We welcome him. Sure, things are tough in America and the auto business, but I just know GM will prevail.”
