hearing #90 Owner Junie Donlavey is talking to a few drivers for the #90 Hills Brothers Ford ride in 2001 including: Hut Stricklin, who drove the car for most of 2000; Greg Sacks, who last made a Daytona 500 attempt in the defunct #96 Perry-Huggins team in 2000; Geoffrey Bodine; Rick Mast; Jeff Fuller; and Ed Berrier, who started the 2000 season in the #90. Sacks recently coached CTS drivers Ricky Hendrick at the ARCA Daytona testing. Hendrick will run a few ARCA events in 2000 also(12-17-2000) UPDATE: Apparently, it is not a foregone conclusion that Hut Stricklin will be back as driver of Junie Donlaveys #90 Ford. Donlavey has talked with several other drivers, one of them being veteran Greg Sacks. Reportedly, sponsor Hills Brothers Coffee will make the final call(Gaston Gazette) AND Team owner Junie Donlavey is letting sponsor Hills Brothers play a major role in selecting the driver for next season. It’s almost Christmas, but no contract has been signed with the team. Donlavey said Jeff Fuller, Greg Sacks, Rick Mast and Hut Stricklin all have spoken with the company. The team has added five crew members from the defunct Grubb Motorsports BGN operation(Richmond Times Dispatch)(12-24-2000) UPDATE 2: In a cross-promotion with sponsor Hills Bros Coffee and his hometown minor-league hockey team, car owner Junior Donlavey will announce his driver for 2001 during first intermission of Saturday night’s Richmond Renegades home hockey game against Charlotte. Donlavey remained mum on who the driver will be, with Hut Stricklin apparently the front-runner at the end of the season, having taken the wheel at mid-year. Others said to be in the running are Rick Mast, Greg Sacks and Jeff Fuller. Hills Bros, which joined Donlavey full-time in 2000, re-upped in October, and Donlavey, as always, promised to give the sponsor first call in driver choice.(SpeedVision), will also have NASCAR RIR Jersey’s available Dec. 29th and 30th at the merchandise stand there at the game(12-28-2000) UPDATE 3: have heard from a few sources that Hut Stricklin will be named the driver of the #90 AND Yesterday afternoon, Hut Stricklin was standing in Junie Donlavey’s Richmond-based shop when his cell phone rang. Asked to confirm he would be the driver for the #90 Winston Cup team in 2001, Stricklin waited half a second and responded. “I hope so,” he said. “We’ve got a lot invested here, just time and stuff.” But Hut, aren’t you standing in Donlavey’s shop right now? “Yes.” Isn’t that a sign that you will be the driver when the an-nouncement is made in just more than 24 hours? “I hope so.” There’s no breaking a driver trying to secure a deal with a sponsor. There’s a garage full of drivers who can attest to the fact that if you speak too early, you lose the deal. Stricklin isn’t risking anything. Still, he is expected to be the man in the spotlight tonight when Hills Brothers reveals Donlavey’s 2001 driver. In a ceremony at the Richmond Renegades hockey game, Donlavey and his team will join the sponsor in a showcase announcement. The group includes five crew members from the former Grubb Motorsports BGN (#83) operation. And Stricklin. He and Donlavey joined forces in 2000 for the second time in their careers and began working to rebuild the team. Donlavey’s driver announcement is scheduled for the first intermission during tonight’s 7:30 game at the Coliseum.(Richmond Times Dispatch)(12-30-2000) UPDATE 4: #90 owner,Junie Donlavey announced his driver and crew chief for the 2001 season and unveiled the new paint scheme for the Hills Brothers Coffee Ford during an on-ice announcement at the Richmond Renegades hockey game Saturday. Hut Stricklin will return in 2001 as Donlavey’s driver. The crew chief will be Bobby King, recently of the #83 Grubb Motorsports team that shot doen at the end of the 2000 season(That’s Racin’)(12-31-2000)
