hearing Billy ‘Catfish’ Parker and Rusty Wallace Inc [RWI] have parted ways. One possibility I hear is Jamie McMurray driving some races in the car.
MORE another driver rumored is Burt Myers; also the RWI site, www.rwiracing.com has removed Billy Parker’s info.
UPDATE: Billy “Catfish” Parker has been released from Rusty Wallace Inc.’s #66 Dodges in the NASCAR Busch Series effective immediately. Nextel Cup driver Jamie McMurray will drive the #66 in the series’ next race, July 24 at New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon, N.H., sources said. A RWI spokesman said a news release regarding its driver situation would be issued late Thursday afternoon or Friday. Parker, 27, drove in Late Models across North Carolina and Virginia in 2002 and 2003 before being tapped by Cup driver Rusty Wallace as the driver of his new Busch team. A native of Denver, N.C., Parker is the son of legendary pro fisherman Hank Parker and the brother of Craftsman Truck Series driver Hank Parker Jr.(ThatsRacin.com)(7-15-2004)
UPDATE 2 – Rusty’s Statement: “Taking into consideration the flood of phone calls and emails we have received concerning our driver program, I felt that it was appropriate to comment on the issue. RWI Racing is currently in the process of re-evaluating its driver lineup. I cannot stress enough that no permanent decision has been made in terms of our driver. An announcement concerning our driver lineup for New Hampshire will be circulated by the middle of next week, if not earlier. The team will have no further comment on the issue at this time.”(RWI PR)(7-16-2004)
UPDATE 3: BGNRacing.com reports that McMurray tested with the team at Greenville Speedway on Thursday and is the likely driver for New Hampshire.(BGNRacing.com)(7-17-2004)
UPDATE 4: Jamie McMurray will be pulling double duty this weekend at New Hampshire International Speedway as he will pilot the #66 Dodge in the NASCAR Busch Series race on Saturday before climbing behind the wheel of the #42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge for Sunday’s New England 300.(Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates PR), Parker will remain with the team as a test driver and doing R&D work,(7-20-2004)
UPDATE 5: RWI general manager Barry Dodson said he was disgruntled by published reports that the team had released Parker, 27. “He’s still employed here, he’s just not driving the car,” Dodson said. “He still might be used for some testing and some developmental stuff — he’s just not going to drive the car right now. We just need to have some production, mainly for the sponsor, but also for what Rusty and Pattie have put together, and for the race team, because we’ve got a helluva race team here.” The move mirrors what Nextel Cup owner Richard Childress did with his team, replacing Johnny Sauter with veteran Dave Blaney, while keeping Sauter under contract. “Exactly,” Dodson said. “Just making all of the races and finishing them was our goal. We did not put any pressure on (Parker) — we just wanted to qualify for all the races.”(more at NASCAR.com), still no Parker listed on their website.(7-21-2004)
UPDATE 6: Effective immediately, Rusty Wallace and Jamie McMurray will assume primary driving duties for Duraflame RWI Racing in the NASCAR Busch Series. Wallace, a former NASCAR Premier Series Champion and McMurray, a former NASCAR Premier Series Rookie of the Year, will replace 27-year old rookie driver, Billy Parker, at the helm of the #66 Dodge for the remainder of the team’s 2004 NASCAR Busch Series schedule. McMurray will be tapped for the team’s next start at New Hampshire International Raceway.
Said team owner and now driver, Wallace, “This was a really tough decision to make. The team’s performance just isn’t where we think it should be, so we have to start taking a look at what’s going on. In order to do that, we had to get more of a veteran in the car so that
we can evaluate our equipment. Jamie McMurray has a great track record in the Busch Series and I think that his input is going to
really help this team. He’s an incredibly talented and aggressive driver. Obviously, I’ve been doing this for a long time as well, so
hopefully between the both of us, we’ll be able to give the guys some good feedback.”
Billy Parker will remain a vital part of Duraflame RWI Racing, performing testing and development duties for the team.
“Billy Parker is a great person and a great friend of my family. I still believe in him and his ability to drive a race car. He’s one of
the most naturally talented people I’ve met in terms of handling fans, sponsors and media. Unfortunately, the team’s communication and performance just wasn’t there, so a change had to be made. With a rookie team, rookie crew chief and rookie driver, there just ended up being too many unknowns. Billy is still going to be a key player on this team. Everyone here at RWI Racing loves him and wants him to succeed. We just have to take things one step at a time. Maybe they’ll be an opportunity for him to run some more races for us in the future if the situation works out right,” Wallace noted.
Wallace’s 2004 Busch Series starts will mark his first starts in the series since Milwaukee in 1993. The 1989 Premier Series Champion and 55-time race winner has eight top-five and fourteen top-ten finishes in 33 career Busch Series starts. His 2004 Busch Series stint will mark his reunification with the legendary number 66, the number he drove to the majority of his over 200 short track victories. McMurray will participate in the New Hampshire, Bristol, California, Kansas, Richmond, Atlanta and Miami NASCAR Busch Series races on behalf of Duraflame RWI Racing and will drive in the Phoenix and Michigan Busch Series races for Discount Tire pursuant to a prior commitment with Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. In accommodation of this commitment, Wallace, eighth on NASCAR’s all-time wins list, will take command of the Duraflame Dodge for the Phoenix and Michigan rounds of the series.(RWI PR). NOTE: actually Wallace last ran in the Busch Series at California Speedway in Oct. 1997.(7-22-2004)
