pandr
10-08-2011, 08:36 PM
Bowyer joins 3-car team at Michael Waltrip Racing
By David Scott
Friday, Oct. 07, 2011
KANSAS CITY, Kan. – Clint Bowyer once called Michael Waltrip “the worst driver in NASCAR, period.”
Friday, Bowyer is having to live down what he said over his car radio in 2008 in Bristol, Tenn., when he was unhappy after a seven-car wreck that had been precipitated by Waltrip.
“You know, you never know when you are going to have to eat those words, and I’d say today’s the day,” Bowyer said Friday when Michael Waltrip Racing announced it had signed Bowyer to a three-year deal. "But he promised me he would be the best owner ever."
Bowyer’s move to MWR ends his six-year career at Richard Childress Racing, for which he won four races.
“This is a good day for me,“ said Bowyer, 31, who is winless this season and didn’t qualify for the Chase for the Cup. “Obviously, I’ve been with RCR from day one. I owe a lot to Richard, but it was time for me to move on.”
Bowyer is another big-name free agent this year to make a decision about his future. Points co-leader Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle have announced that he would remain with Roush Fenway Racing. Juan Pablo Montoya is also staying with Chip Ganassi Racing.
Bowyer joins a MWR team that includes Cup drivers David Reutimann and Martin Truex Jr. Waltrip said he would show no favoritism toward any of his three teams.
“There just isn’t any need for it,” said Waltrip. “We have plates in the back shop and tractor-trailer comes in the back gate and unloads metal and shoots cars out the other end. Those cars are built for each one of those teams. It’s up to Clint and his crew chief to go out there on the track and do what he’s done so well.
Waltrip hopes adding Bowyer will improve his team’s odds of landing at least one driver in the Chase.
“It was the No. 1 thing on our radar screen for this year,” he said. “I felt like we could contend for a Chase spot and Toyota stepped up with our engines. We just didn’t get the job done.”
Bowyer said that when Scott Miller, a former director of competition at RCR, was recently hired to a similar post at MWR, his interest was piqued.
“That definitely tripped my trigger,” Bowyer said.
Bowyer also brings sponsor 5-Hour Energy with him to MWR. The company will sponsor Bowyer’s car for 24 of 36 races next season. He will drive a No. 15 Toyota -- and remain in his No. 33 Chevy for RCR through the end of this season. The crew chief for his team hasn’t been named.
Waltrip also has a sense of humor about the disparaging remark once made against him by his soon-to-be employee:
“Did you say I was the worst driver ever?” he asked Bowyer. “Or during that era?”
C/P thats racin
By David Scott
Friday, Oct. 07, 2011
KANSAS CITY, Kan. – Clint Bowyer once called Michael Waltrip “the worst driver in NASCAR, period.”
Friday, Bowyer is having to live down what he said over his car radio in 2008 in Bristol, Tenn., when he was unhappy after a seven-car wreck that had been precipitated by Waltrip.
“You know, you never know when you are going to have to eat those words, and I’d say today’s the day,” Bowyer said Friday when Michael Waltrip Racing announced it had signed Bowyer to a three-year deal. "But he promised me he would be the best owner ever."
Bowyer’s move to MWR ends his six-year career at Richard Childress Racing, for which he won four races.
“This is a good day for me,“ said Bowyer, 31, who is winless this season and didn’t qualify for the Chase for the Cup. “Obviously, I’ve been with RCR from day one. I owe a lot to Richard, but it was time for me to move on.”
Bowyer is another big-name free agent this year to make a decision about his future. Points co-leader Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle have announced that he would remain with Roush Fenway Racing. Juan Pablo Montoya is also staying with Chip Ganassi Racing.
Bowyer joins a MWR team that includes Cup drivers David Reutimann and Martin Truex Jr. Waltrip said he would show no favoritism toward any of his three teams.
“There just isn’t any need for it,” said Waltrip. “We have plates in the back shop and tractor-trailer comes in the back gate and unloads metal and shoots cars out the other end. Those cars are built for each one of those teams. It’s up to Clint and his crew chief to go out there on the track and do what he’s done so well.
Waltrip hopes adding Bowyer will improve his team’s odds of landing at least one driver in the Chase.
“It was the No. 1 thing on our radar screen for this year,” he said. “I felt like we could contend for a Chase spot and Toyota stepped up with our engines. We just didn’t get the job done.”
Bowyer said that when Scott Miller, a former director of competition at RCR, was recently hired to a similar post at MWR, his interest was piqued.
“That definitely tripped my trigger,” Bowyer said.
Bowyer also brings sponsor 5-Hour Energy with him to MWR. The company will sponsor Bowyer’s car for 24 of 36 races next season. He will drive a No. 15 Toyota -- and remain in his No. 33 Chevy for RCR through the end of this season. The crew chief for his team hasn’t been named.
Waltrip also has a sense of humor about the disparaging remark once made against him by his soon-to-be employee:
“Did you say I was the worst driver ever?” he asked Bowyer. “Or during that era?”
C/P thats racin