Working On My Redneck ™ » RCR

It’s Official, Bowyer Moves To Michael Waltrip Racing

Leon — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 03:31:02 +0000

(photo courtesy Harold Hinson)

Every since Michael Waltrip started up his own race team, MWR, it appears that there has been something missing that would take MWR to the next level. The organization has only won two races, both of them by David Reutimann. That team has been very erratic, and so has the Martin Truex, Jr. race team.

Friday, at the Kansas Speedway, Michael Waltrip announced the signing of Clint Bowyer to drive the MWR #15 5Hour Energy Drink Toyota beginning in 2012. Bowyer is a former Nationwide champion, and a multiple winner at the Sprint Cup level for Richard Childress Racing. Is this the piece of the puzzle that has been missing for MWR?

Clearly that is what everybody at MWR, Toyota and new sponsor 5-Hour Energy is hoping in hiring a driver whom many firmly believe is one of the top wheelmen in the garages. They are hoping that Bowyer will help the team reach the Chase next season and then do well once in those playoffs.

Clint Bowyer is extremely optimistic about the prognosis for MWR in 2012.

“I see a young, aggressive team,” he said. “Great backing with Toyota behind them in a down market. I see a young, energetic sponsor in the same boat. Both of them are pushing forward. They’re spending. I see this as an opportunity to catch up, period. I think that there’s no question MWR has done a great job with marketing for their sponsors and keeping sponsors. Better than anybody in the garage area.”

“I see their performance improving week in and week out, so I had to work my butt off to make sure I was on top of them before I walked into this deal here. I just see this as a wonderful opportunity for me to prove myself to everybody. I mean, when you go into RCR (Richard Childress Racing) that has already won many championships and had the success Richard’s (Childress) had, you’re just kind of another guy there. If we can go on and put them in the Chase and continue to move forward with MWR, you’re going to build your brand even better.”

Bowyer was to become a free agent after the current season, 2011. About three months ago, he said, he was approached by 5-Hour Energy about being his sponsor in 2012.

Bowyer said he approached RCR about staying with that team with 5-Hour as his primary sponsor but no deal could be worked out.

Asked about that Friday, Bowyer said, “We’re not here to talk about that. We’re here to talk about the future and it just didn’t work out. It was a shame. Like I said, I owe a great deal to Richard (Richard). It was just a few miles down the road I was standing in a body shop when that man called me. I will never forget that day and I owe a lot to him for that, but I also owe him this opportunity as well.”

As it stands, RCR’s lineup next season will consist of Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton and Paul Menard. Also, presumably, waiting in the wings is Austin Dillon, Childress’ grandson who has been impressive in the Camping World Trucks Series.

MWR was more than willing to put Bowyer in one of its rides and on Friday, the deal became official.

“I think timing is everything,” Bowyer said. “It’s so weird how all of this has happened. The minute one door closes, it’s like somebody is looking after you and just kind of putting me on this path. As one door would close the other one would open and it was almost like the very next step. It didn’t matter who you were talking to, there was a closed door and an opened door and it just kind of led to this. I truly feel like this is where I’m supposed to be and I think that is a great thing.”

What is your thoughts about Bowyer moving over to Michael Waltrip Racing?

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

Johnson Wins The Pole For The AAA 400

Leon — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 17:26:19 +0000

(photo courtesy Al Bello/Getty Images)

On Friday afternoon Jimmie Johnson secured the pole position for the AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway. The four-time and reigning champion’s fast lap was at 155.736 mph. The pole was the third of the season for Johnson, who has won five races in 2010.

“This is certainly a step in the right direction for momentum,” Johnson said. “Last weekend we ran much better than where we finished. It stinks that we finished where we did but there is nothing we can really do about it and to come out this weekend and qualify on the pole just starts the weekend off on the right foot. And it really creates a good situation for us in the race having that first pit stall.

“Track position is very, very important here. It seems to be more important as each weekend and each year goes by. We just learn more about the cars and make them more equal and the aero deficit that you’re in being one position back; just one position back is enough to keep you from running the lap times you need to.

“So, it’s all small little steps now and track position is one of the few big steps left in our sport. And the best way to get that track position is by qualifying on the front row or up front, and we did that. Hopefully we can maintain that track position throughout the race and have a good finish.”

Here is the official starting lineup for the AAA 400 at Dover Sunday.

PS As Saturday’s first Sprint Cup practice session started, Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin had an on-track run in. That on track run-in spilled over into the garage area and those two drivers and crew chiefs were involved in a very heated discussion.

It is speculated that Harvick was standing up for his team mate, Clint Bowyer. Both Kurt Busch and Denny Hamlin had lambasted Clint Bowyer’s team regarding the RCR fines and penalty from Louden last week.

Is Kevin Harvick fueling a feud with Denny Hamlin?

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

RCR Making First Truck Race At Dover

Leon — Wed, 12 May 2010 22:36:11 +0000

(photo courtesy RCR PR)

Richard Childress Racing will honor the induction of Dale Earnhardt,Sr. into the NASCAR Hall of Fame starting this weekend with a special paint scheme. The RCR #3 Pro Bass Shops Chevrolet Silverado driven by Childress’ grandson, Austin Dillon will pay tribute to the 7 time Sprint Cup champion this weekend at The Monster Mile at Dover.

This weekend will mark the very first appearance of Richard Childress Racing at Dover in a NASCAR Camping World Truck series event. This marks Austin Dillon’s first visit to The Monster Mile in a truck race, however, he did race at Dover in 2008 in the NASCAR K&N Pro East Series where he finished 8th.

After five races in the 2010 season, Dillon is tied with Ricky Carmichael for 8th place in the point standings.

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

Childress Close To Re-Signing Harvick

Leon — Mon, 10 May 2010 04:20:07 +0000

(photo courtesy Leon Hammack)

After all the unrest and negative press given to the Kevin Harvick-Richard Childress relationship since the middle of the 2009 season, when it was reported that Harvick wanted out of the remainder of his contract, the relationship seemed to have just fixed itself.

Richard Childress expects to have Sprint Cup points leader #29-Kevin Harvick signed to a new deal by the Coca-Cola 600 at the end of the month. “Yeah, we’re pretty far down the road,” the owner of Richard Childress Racing said of negotiations before Friday’s Cup practice at Darlington Raceway.

“We’ve still got to get a few things finalized, but we’re looking forward to getting everything done by Charlotte or before Charlotte.” Harvick was not immediately available for comment, but did say in a recent radio interview that he hoped to have a deal in place soon. Sponsorship is among the details to be finalized. Shell/Pennzoil announced last month it would leave Harvick after this season and move to the #22 car of Kurt Busch at Penske Racing in 2011.

Asked if Budweiser or Mobile I, big-name sponsors whose current deals are up, might be on the list, Childress said, “There are sponsors that are not even in the sport that are interested,” Childress added.

So it appears that one of the biggest proposed free agents is about to be removed from the free agency field! However, there are still dominoes to fall in this “silly season” of seat swapping! Stay tuned!

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

Harvick and RCR Burned Bridges?

Leon — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 14:02:27 +0000

(photo courtesy Leon Hammack)

It appears that there are multiple sources around the garage area that have implicated that the Harvick-Childress relationship is irretrievable. Therefore, the chances of re-signing Kevin Harvick to a contract with Richard Childress Racing is a huge uphill battle. With the loss of the Shell/Pennzoil sponsorship, the chances have become slimmer and slimmer that Harvick would re-sign with Childress.

Last year Harvick was trying to get out of the remaining year of his contract with RCR. However, Childress would not have any part of that idea and held Harvick to the entire duration of the contract.

“Kevin has burned all his bridges here,” said a source requesting anonymity following the news of Shell’s departure. The source reiterated the chances of Childress and Harvick dissolving their marriage were close to 100%. Harvick is the top free agent driver on the market. His preferred destination is Stewart-Haas Racing, where he’d have Hendrick equipment. Tony Stewart is on the record as wanting to expand to three cars next season, dependent upon sponsorship. With Harvick to sell and the broad range of commercial possibilities available through the team’s partner-like association with Hendrick, Stewart-Haas has far greater ability to find a sponsor for Harvick.

However, Kasey Kahne’s decision to join Rick Hendrick’s organization in 2012 has led to widespread speculation that he’ll be at Stewart-Haas in 2011. Kahne certainly will be in Hendrick equipment next season and it’s the logical place. The other possibility would be for Hendrick to ask Mark Martin to vacate the #5 a year early to go to Stewart-Haas.

The pieces of the 2011 puzzle are now falling out of the puzzle box. But just how those puzzle pieces will fit together is going make for a very interesting journalistic “Silly Season”!

Where do you think that Kevin Harvick will land in 2011?

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

Changes At Childress’ Nationwide Team

Leon — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 01:44:43 +0000

After a crash this afternoon in practice at the Phoenix International Raceway, Richard Childress removed John Wes Townley from the driver’s seat of his #21 Zaxby’s Chevy. In Townley’s place Childress put former Nationwide Series champion, Clint Bowyer in the seat.

Townley was signed to a contract to drive Richard Childress’ #21 Zaxby’s Chevy in the off season. In the first four races of 2010, Townley has been a sub-par under-performer. This RCR team is used to having a strong driver in the seat and contend for the series championship regularly. But so far in 2010 the team has been a botton feeder!

Last year Townley drove the #09 RAB Racing Ford. In 2009, it just seemed that Townley consistently was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Race after race he was involved in numerous crashes, destroying numerous good race cars. So it was quite surpising to Workingonmyredneck that Townley was signed to such a good race team, namely Richard Childress Racing.

Being removed from a race seat so early in the season is extremely rare in NASCAR’s upper tier of racing these day, since getting that ride is so very difficult to secure in the first place. According to sources in the garage area, Townley will most likely not return to RCR’s Nationwide team.

Now the search is on to secure a driver for the #21 RCR Zaxby’s Chevy.

Who so you think Richard Childress will put into the drivers seat?

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

Childress Decides Less Is Better

Leon — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 19:40:07 +0000

(photo courtesy RCR PR)

At the end of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup season, Richard Childress polled all members of his organization trying to solve a simple math problem.

Why did three plus one equal zero?

That was the perplexing equation last season. In 2007 and 2008 Richard Childress Racing qualified all three of his race teams for the Chase for The Cup. In 2009 RCR added a fourth race team and failed to put just one of the four into the Chase!

“We couldn’t put our finger on it,” Childres said. “I asked every one of our crew chiefs and engineers, and even our drivers, ‘can you tell me anything where the fourth team took away from us?’ Nobody could say. We just couldn’t save it.”

Because of the lack of sponsorship, Jack Daniels discontinued their relationship with RCR after the 2009 season, Childress has scaled back to three race teams for 2010. RCR also has addressed the problems by investing in new technology, better engineering, and several personel shifts within the organization.

Scott Miller was elevated from crew chief on the #31 CAT Chevy to the team’s director of competition, filing a position that was split between two managers in 2009. Now all the crew chiefs of RCR answer to Miller.

Childress says the team made “huge dollar investments on equipment” and also spent to shore up its engineering department. He estimates that more than $3 million was spent building and fine tuning a new fleet after the team started 2009 heading in the wrong direction.

This year, 2010, is a critical year for RCR’s driver lineup. Clint Bowyer and Jeff Burton are signed through 2011, however, Kevin Harvick is in the last year of his contract with RCR, hasn’t won a race in three years, and openly was feuding with Childress.

The dissension lessened after the team began making tremendous changes in late summer and Harvick notched a few top ten finishes. Those top tens included a third place finish at Homestead in the finale.

RCR has tried to fill the void of the data gathered by the fourth team last year by forming new technical alliances with TRG Motorsports and Furniture Row Racing, as well as improving its engine partnership with Earnhardt Ganassi Racing.

Sharing information should help teams adapt to NASCAR’s rule changes that are coming this season. Sharing information is the keystone to a successful race team. There is so much data that needs to be deciphered in such a short amount of time. These days that is what is separating the good teams from the championship teams!

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

Harvick/RCR Future In Question

Leon — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:31:49 +0000

(photo courtesy NASCAR)

After the February 2001 Daytona 500, which resulted in the death of Dale Earnhardt, Sr., Kevin Harvick was quickly elevated to the position of “the franchise and future of Richard Childress Racing“. That move was quickly reinforced with Harvick’s emotional win just a few races later at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in March of 2001.

However, over the last nine years the owner and driver have had their ups and downs. Throughout most of the 2009 season the entire Richard Childress Racing organization was struggling. that is when the outspoken Harvick expressed his displeasure with RCR, and that he would be leaving at the end of his 2010 contract. In fact they have been acting almost like a long time married couple who no longer have to stay together ” for the kids sake”!

This could make for an uncomfortable situation for the race team, a “lame duck driver” and a race team rebuilding. But both Harvick and Richard Childress have expressed to the media that they are willing to make this all work, no matter what the cost!

However, Childress did admit that things did get a little testy in the middle of the 2009 season. But he added that by about the Labor Day Atlanta race the race teams all began to pull on the same end of the rope.

Over the winter it appears that the whole RCR organization is now determined to turn the ship around and get back into the state of competitiveness that was there in 2008. Childress has invested heavily in new equipment, engineering, as well as making significant leadership changes within the organization.

Nevertheless, the big rumor mill floating around the garage area is that Kevin Harvick will join Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman at Stewart-Haas Racing after the 2010 season.

Meanwhile, it is the beginning of the 2010 season, there is a Daytona 500 to be raced, and “Happy” Harvick is optimistic about his 2010 season. In spite of all the negative rhetoric from 2009, there could still be a slim chance for the RCR/Harvick relationship to continue with another contract, but I would not bet on it!

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

Parity in NASCAR?

Leon — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:36:00 +0000

In 2008 there were 12 different winners for the 36 races held. But of those 12 different drivers, Carl Edwards won nine races, Kyle Busch scored eight victories, Jimmie Johnson won 7 races, for a total of 24 of the 36 races during the season. Three drivers winning two-thirds of the sanctioned races! That would be domination, not parity!

Meanwhile, in 2009 there have been 11 different drivers to score victories in the first 17 races! That would indicate to the average person that parity has arrived at NASCAR, right? That would depend on how you define parity? Is your definition of parity, parity of drivers? Is your definition of parity, parity of race teams?

In 2008, as was illustrated above, three drivers won two-thirds of all the races. That would indicate that there was not parity among drivers at all! If your definition of parity is among race teams, that existed only among three of the four “super teams”. Hendrick Motorsports tallied 8 victories, Joe Gibbs Racing won 10 races, Roush-Fenway won 11 times, and Richard Childress Racing only went to victory lane 3 times.

Now let’s look at the first half of the 2009 season. Again there have been 11 winners in the first 17 races. Kyle Busch and Mark Martin each have 3 victories, while Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson have won twice. Four drivers have won 10 out of 17 races, unlike the domination that occurred in2008. From the driver standpoint, the wins appear to be spread out amongst more drivers in 2009.

When talking about parity among race teams, that more than likely will never exist! Currently there are the “Big Four” when talking about race teams, Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, Roush-Fenway Racing, and Richard Childress Racing. This year, Hendrick Motorsports has won six races, Joe Gibbs Racing has won four times, and Roush-Fenway Racing has two victories, and Richard Childress Racing has a big fat goose egg! Three of “The Big Four” are responsible for 12 of the 17 victories this season. So as far as team parity, it still is far from ever happening!

One note to the new race fan, there is one team to keep an eye on. It is the newly formed Stewart-Haas Racing, controlled by Tony Stewart! This team has emerged from the “also rans’ to be a championship contender. The rumor mill is churning about all the potential possibilities with this team and its Hendrick affiliation. This off season promises to strengthen their position as an up-and-coming new powerhouse!

What is your take on parity? Should NASCAR strive to achieve it?

UNTIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!