Nemechek to the #44? UPDATE 2 No Grissom in Jones Out: rumors are afloat that place Joe Nemechek (recently released by Haas-Cart Motorsports) in the #44 Georgia Pacific Petty Racing Dodge at Martinsville this weekend. Buckshot Jones is the current driver.(4-9-2002) UPDATE: checked with a few more sources and been told that Nemechek is still under contract with Haas Carter Motorsports and that the team is hoping sponsorship will come through soon.(4-9-2002) UPDATE 2: Effective this week for the Aaron’s 499 at Talladega, Steve Grissom will drive the #44 Georgia-Pacific Dodge. Grissom, a former BGN and NASCAR All-Pro series champion, has worked with Petty Enterprises over the past year helping them test and develop their Dodge Intrepid race cars. “Buckshot did a good job for us, and I personally appreciate everything he has done for us at Petty Enterprises,” said Kyle Petty, CEO of Petty Enterprises. “We continue to have the utmost respect for Buckshot as an individual and as a Winston Cup driver. We have not performed to our expectations, and we felt like it was time to make a change. Sometimes you change the coach, and sometimes you change the quarterback. This time we decided to shake up the chemistry by changing the quarterback. We believe that Steve, because he’s been around us and has helped us with these cars, can step in and move the Georgia-Pacific team forward. Because of the way we’ve done our testing with our R&D program, Steve has more laps in some of our cars than I do or John does. Ordinarily you’d expect some disruption with a change of drivers, but Steve has worked with the team, and has won a Busch Series championship with crew chief Bryant Frazier, so we expect him to step in and not skip a beat.” “I’m excited to get the opportunity to drive the Georgia-Pacific/Brawny Dodge,” said Grissom. “Everyone can see the great strides that Petty Enterprises has made this year. Having the opportunity to assist in the testing and development of these cars means that I know how good they are. The team that Kyle Petty and Robin Pemberton have put together is a winning combination. I’m confident that I can come in and work well with the team and that we will have success.”(Williams Company PR)(4-17-2002)
