McCumbee considered a top candidate for Petty Enterprises' No. 45 in '09
BROOKLYN, Mich. – Petty Enterprises has not decided on a driver for its No. 45 car next year, team official Robbie Loomis said Friday, but Chad McCumbee remains one of the top candidates for the ride.
Michael McDowell and Casey Mears are some of the other drivers who have been mentioned, though Mears appears poised to sign with Richard Childress Racing. Loomis said the team was still speaking with multiple drivers.
“I’ve made no secret that we’re really high on Chad McCumbee,” Loomis said. “Being young presents a lot of newness for Petty Enterprises itself. David Zucker, our CEO, is really big on mixing things up a lot and trying something fresh.
“It’s like he said: Part of our problem at Petty Enterprises is that it’s hard to get that guy who is showing what he does on the race track to come to us. So we’ve got to get that guy that we believe has got it and take a chance on him doing it on the race track.”
McCumbee, spending his off-week from the Craftsman Truck Series in the Cup garage at Michigan, said he’s “working hard” on trying to land a ride with the Pettys. The North Carolina native has run several events for the team in its No. 45 car and recently had a solid run at Pocono.
“I’m just kind of floating around for now, waiting to see what’s going to happen,” he said.
He added that he expects to hear a decision within the next couple weeks at the latest.
McDowell, who said last week that he had spoken with Petty officials, declined to speculate on where he might go if current team Michael Waltrip Racing is unable to find sponsorship for him.
“I’m committed to Michael Waltrip Racing and that’s the first thing,” he said. “Out of respect, it’s better not to talk about what the future holds. We’re trying to lock down sponsorship for the 00 with Michael Waltrip Racing now, and we hope to do that. … Hopefully we’ll get a sponsor to take on the 00 and move forward.”
Loomis said the team could afford to take a chance on a young driver because of the experience of the organization’s veterans, Bobby Labonte and Kyle Petty.
“We have a lot of experience, and that’s what could offer us the opportunity to take a chance with the other car,” he said.
