Bill Elliott said LAST week he’ll talk about his plans for retirement as a driver when he’s good and ready to do so, but he admitted again Saturday that it’s something he’s thought about. “I am at the age that not many people go very much past,” said Elliott, who turn 48 on Oct. 8. Only four drivers in history – Dale Earnhardt, Morgan Shepherd, Bobby Allison and Harry Gant – have won at an older age than Elliott is right now. “I do know I’m on the shorter end of the stick,” Elliott said. “Whether it’s this year, next year or the year after, we’ve got to sit down with (car owner) Ray (Evernham) and make that decision. We’ve got to talk about not only what’s best for me but what’s best for the race team. “That’s something I need to sit down and think through, discuss and figure out what’s going to be best. It’s a huge decision to make, but right now my focus in on this race and that’s (retirement’s) the farthest thing from my mind.”( ThatsRacin.com )(8-30-2003) UPDATE: Bill Elliott, always the realist, admits he’d consider retirement under the right circumstances, but he notes much would have to line up correctly to persuade him to call it quits after this season. Elliott, 48 in October, noted after his Brickyard victory last year that he would begin to consider his future toward the end of his driving contract with Evernham Motorsports. That contract concludes after this season, although both Elliott and owner Ray Evernham are considering extending it. “It depends on a lot of circumstances,” the 1988 NASCAR champion said. “If Ray could find somebody to get in the car and take the team to the next level, I’d step out and let it go. But several things are going to have to happen. Do we go this road, this road, this road? I’ll tell you one thing, I’d quit this minute if I had to go through changing teams again. “I wouldn’t do that another year. I’m way too old for that crap.”( Speed Channel )(8-31-2003)
