NASCAR officials are considering alterations to the point system for the Nationwide Series that would deny points for most, if not all, Sprint Cup drivers in 2009, several sources have told NASCAR Scene. Beginning in 2009, drivers in the top 35 in the Sprint Cup standings would not be eligible to receive points in the Nationwide Series, under a proposal being considered by NASCAR.
On Sirius NASCAR Radio’s Sirius Speedway Tuesday, Bill Davis once again denied reports that Jacques Villeneuve or his agent, Craig Pollack, have purchased the team, saying that he and his wife maintain 100% ownership.
Team Red Bull boss Guenther Steiner said the team hasn’t decided whether it would add a third car for Scott Speed when the former Formula One driver, who will run the ARCA series next year, is ready to move to Cup. But if the two-car team were to expand, additional Camrys wouldn’t be sponsored by Red Bull, the energy drink company that also owns the operation. “First we need to see how Scott performs, but if we did a third car we would try to finance it somehow differently,” Steiner said. “To have three Red Bull cars doesn’t make sense. There is a plan, but at the moment in Cup, we want to perform with two cars at highest level and then proceed to three to four cars in the future.”
Jacques Villeneuve has apparently completed a buy-in of Bill Davis’ High Point-based Toyota operation, according to sources close to the team, and Villeneuve will have at least a majority interest in the operation, perhaps even full ownership. Last Sunday, when asked about the report of a planned Villeneuve buy-in, Davis said he wasn’t in a position to give a specific answer but did say he was considering a number of options. It is unclear what a purchase price might be. It is also unclear why Villeneuve, who lives in Montreal, would want to buy a NASCAR team, or if Villeneuve might move the team from High Point, where Davis has operated for more than 15 years.
Add Dale Earnhardt Inc. to the teams returning to the Chevrolet banner in 2008. On Friday at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Chevy and DEI announced intentions to continue a partnership with the four-car Nextel Cup operation for the forseeable future. Among those present at the news conference were DEI’s five drivers - Mark Martin, Martin Truex Jr., Paul Menard, Regan Smith and Aric Almirola - along with team owner Teresa Earnhardt. Chevrolet previously announced extended partnerships with Hendrick Motorsports and Richard Childress Racing. Another long-time Chevy team - Joe Gibbs Racing - announced earlier this season plans to switch to Toyota for 2008.
Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates announced driver Dario Franchitti will make his Busch Series debut Saturday at Memphis. In preparation for the race, Franchitti is scheduled to spend Wednesday testing at Kentucky Speedway.
Jeremy Mayfield will take over a new NASCAR Nextel Cup ride four races early, replacing Jeff Green in the No. 66 Haas CNC Racing entry for the rest of the season. Mayfield is leaving Bill Davis Racing, and the No. 36 BDR ride he is giving up will be shared for now by Craftsman Truck series regulars Mike Skinner and Johnny Benson. Mayfield will replace Green in the 66 Chevrolet, beginning with Sunday’s race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The Haas team announced earlier this month that Scott Riggs, currently with Gillette Evernham Motorsports, would replace Green or No. 70 driver Johnny Sauter in 2008. It hasn’t been determined which car Mayfield will drive next year.
Robert I. Kauffman, president and a founding partner of Fortress Investment Group, has bought a 50 percent interest in Michael Waltrip Racing in the latest unusual coupling in NASCAR. Kauffman joined the Boston Red Sox owner John Henry, the Montreal Canadiens owner George N. Gillett Jr., and the Arizona Diamondbacks executives Jeff Moorad and Tom Garfinkel as newcomers to the Nextel Cup stock-car racing series this season. Waltrip will maintain managing control of the race team, which currently includes the drivers Dale Jarrett, David Reutimann and Waltrip.
Michael Waltrip Racing is still talking with sponsors Domino’s and Burger King, but right now it appears the two companies will not return as primary sponsors in 2008. The pair shared the primary sponsorship of David Reutimann’s No. 00 Toyota this season. Next year, Reutimann will drive the No. 00 in five races, then move to the No. 44 for the remainder of the Sprint Cup season. Reutimann will replace Dale Jarrett, who plans to run the Bud Shootout, the opening five races of the season then the all-star race in his final season.
3M has signed a multi-year agreement with Roush Fenway Racing to become the primary sponsor of the No. 16 Ford. 3M will be the primary sponsor for driver Greg Biffle for 23 Sprint Cup races in 2008. Terms were not disclosed. In 2007 3M sponsored Biffle (19 races) and Todd Kluever (14 races) in the Busch Series, and seven races with Biffle in the Nextel Cup Series. In 2006 3M became the primary sponsor of the No. 06 Ford driven by Kluever in the Busch Series. In 2005, Biffle drove the No. 16 3M Post-it Ford in nine Nextel Cup races, winning at California and Texas on his way to finishing second in the Nextel Cup Championship. Since 1995 3M has been a Contingency Decal sponsor of NASCAR in the Nextel Cup, Busch Series and the Whelen All-America Weekly Racing Series and has many products that have been designated Officially Licensed Products of NASCAR.