had not heard this – Rumors that Tony Stewart might replace Jay Sauter as the driver of the Curb-Agajanian Motorsports Chevrolet are untrue, says team co-owner Cary Agajanian. “That is so far-fetched,” Agajanian said June 7. “Tony is under contract with Joe Gibbs, and I would not ask him to drive our car. It’s really not true. The one thing I can tell you is that Tony Stewart won’t be driving our car. I wouldn’t impose on him. We’ve never, ever talked about it. I talk to Tony Stewart every weekend. I suppose that if somebody watched me talking to Phil at Dover and then saw me walk over and go into Tony Stewart’s motorhome and talk to him, rumors start flying.” The team will field a second car at Kentucky for Phil Parsons with primary sponsorship from Morton’s Salt. None of this, however, will impact Sauter, who will continue to have Morton’s Salt as an associate sponsor. “We’re absolutely pleased with Jay, and that’s absolutely the truth,” Agajanian said. “But I know there were rumors flying. That’s some of the things you face when you start making changes or bringing different people in.” Sauter says such rumors are a distraction, but he’s been assured that his status with CAM is stable. “That’s just part of this business,” Sauter said June 11. “Obviously, it’s a distraction. It’s probably harder on the guys in the shop than it is on me. It makes it hard to get everybody pulling on the rope in the same direction, but I think we’re gonna be OK.”(Winston Cup Scene)(6-14-2001)
