during ESPN2’s NASCAR Show, Boris Said said Rick Clark Motorsports and No Fear Racing will merge in which Clark will have majority ownership. The team is expected to run 12-18 races this season. No word if Said will continue to run the #08 or go back to the #60. Clark has been trying to organize a team in either the Nationwide or Sprint Cup series for the past couple of years and has also led the Drive for Diversity initiative in NASCAR in the past. Said mentioned that an official announcement will be made at Daytona on Thursday where more details will be made known.(2-9-2009)
UPDATE: A 10:00am press conference is scheduled for Thursday where it will be announced that Rick Clark of New River, Va., has become majority owner of Cup team that plans to field Boris Said in 12-18 races this season. Adding to the announcement is that Clark is African-American and he would become the first African-American to be a majority owner in a Cup team since Sam Belnavis owned a Cup team in 2003. This isn’t Clark’s first endeavor with NASCAR. Two years ago, he announced plans to begin running in what is now the Nationwide series and move to Cup but had not been heard from since making the announcement.(Virginian Pilot)(2-11-2009)
UPDATE 2: Rick Clark and Boris Said announced their merger between Rick Clark Motorsports (RCM) and No Fear Racing. The new organization, RCM No Fear Racing, will form a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team with majority minority ownership. Clark, an African American businessman who spent eight years in the NFL as an agent for several players, was lured to the appeal of NASCAR and the opportunity to create a multicultural approach to auto racing which focuses on Americas youth by noted friend and ESPN lead broadcaster Dr. Jerry Punch. The race team will create a platform from which other marketing programs will be launched to increase inclusion in the industry. Said, with crew chief Frank Stoddard, will remain the driver of the #60 car and is expected to compete in 12-18 events in 2009, although competing in the #08 car this weekend through a prior commitment. Among the events that the RCM No Fear Racing team expect to compete are restrictor plate and road course events where Said has had past success. Mobile marketing and an animated movie make up the other marketing verticals, and a foundation will be established to give back to minority communities in need. In addition to Clark, prominent Wall Street and emerging markets finance lawyer, Al Tindall, is a principal in the RCM No Fear Racing team.(Performance PR Plus)(2-12-2009)
UPDATE 3: The two plan to run 12-18 races this season with Said behind the wheel, anticipating additional funding to run a full-time schedule in 2010. RCM / No Fear will start up teams in NASCAR’s lower series, specifically selecting women and minority drivers who can develop over the next few seasons. The goal is to have a teammate at the Cup level for Said by no later than 2012. Debuting at Atlanta in the #60 Ford, this gives his team the cash infusion it needs to not only survive, but also thrive in this tough economy. But at 46, Said knows his days behind the wheel are numbered … and he’s excited to be a part of a future project that could change the landscape of the sport in the long-term. “Boris in not your ‘cookie-cutter’ driver,” Clark said of the road-racing veteran who’s also won a pole at Daytona in a Cup car. “He has a wide appeal, and will serve us well in developing young drivers who might not otherwise have a shot in the sport.” Those young drivers are rumored to be men like motocross champ “Bubba” Stewart, Drive For Diversity graduates Marc Davis and Chris Bristol, and Mexican driver Rogelio Lopez. Whoever gets selected, the long-term plan is for Said and Clark to partner with Nationwide and Truck Series programs to get these drivers an opportunity in top-level equipment to prove themselves under the RCM / No Fear banner. Those partnerships could begin as early as later this year. To support those efforts off the track, Clark plans a groundbreaking marketing program designed to diversify NASCAR’s fan base. Debuting a clothing line called “Krewe Wear” in association with his program, the team will look to market an entire brand of NASCAR-related merchandise to urban America, using some of the profits to expand and develop their program.(Sports Illustrated)(2-13-2009)
