May 3, 2002
- Sadler out of the #21? UPDATE 4 staying thru 2002: ESPN2’s RPM 2 Night reports that Elliott Sadler has asked for his release from the #21 Wood Brothers team. Sadler supposedly is looking at an opportunity with Dale Earnhardt Inc (#15? – no idea). The Wood Brothers have not granted his release yet.(4-30-2002)
UPDATE: Word around some shops [and from ESPN] is that Elliott Sadler has asked for a release from his contract from the #21 Motorcraft Wood Brothers Ford. Sadler has supposedly been approached by several teams and wants out of the contract he has had with the team since 1999 to explore those options. One of the teams rumored to be interested in Sadler is Dale Earnhardt Inc., the home of Dale Earnhardt Jr, Steve Park and Michael Waltrip. Kenny Wallace, who filled in for the Park after his Darlington injuries last September, is still under contract to DEI as well.(NASCAR.com Buzz)(5-1-2002)
UPDATE 2: Elliott Sadler confirmed Wednesday afternoon that he has asked Wood Brothers Racing for a release from his contract, starting at the end of the 2002 season, so that he might begin pursuing other options for 2003. Sadler was adamant about the falsity of reports that he asked for an immediate release, and said that, barring extenuating circumstances, he’ll be in the #21 Motorcraft Ford for the remainder of the year. “The only official thing right now is that, Sunday night, I did ask for my release from the Wood Brothers so that I can pursue other options for the 2003 season,” Sadler said. “All that other stuff about (Dale Earnhardt, Inc.) or anyone else is way too premature at this point.” Wood Brothers Racing declined comment. Ty Norris, DEI executive vice president, seconded Sadler’s statement. He also suggested that May will be a pivotal month in DEI’s future. “There’s nothing really to say at this point,” Norris said. “We have talked to Elliott and we have talked to other drivers as well — including our own. We will make a lot of decisions about the face of DEI’s future by the end of May.”(NASCAR.com)(5-1-2002)
UPDATE 3: Thursday’s ESPN2’s RPM 2 Night reported that Sadler has sponsor’s worth $11 million to bring to a team and has talked to DEI about taking the sponsor there.(5-3-2002)
UPDATE 4: Wood Brothers Racing made clear Friday no matter what the future holds with driver Elliott Sadler, it is expected he will remain as the team’s driver at least through the end of the 2002 season. Sadler confirmed Thursday that he has asked to be released from his contract to explore driving opportunities with other teams. He said he and his team lacked the “chemistry” to build a successful program. Eddie and Len Wood, co-owners of the Wood Brothers Racing team, issued a statement Friday morning in which they acknowledged that Sadler had asked for a release from his contract, but said Sadler would remain as the team’s driver for the rest of the 2002 season. “It was rumored that he was being released or wanted the release immediately. Both of these statements are false,” the statement said. “As far as the issue of the release is concerned, we are working toward a solution that will satisfy both Elliott Sadler and Wood Brothers Racing.” Eddie Wood said later that Sadler’s request caught the team by surprise. “Every day you come to the race track, it’s a new surprise,” he said. “It just happens to be my week. Next week, it will be somebody else’s turn.” Wood said Sadler’s contract runs through the 2005 season. “We’re going to try to work this thing out and if it works out (with Sadler leaving), then we got to figure who is going to be our next guy and we haven’t started yet,” Wood said.(ThatsRacin.com)(5-3-2002) - Baseball scheme for Dale Jr UPDATE: hearing Dale Earnhardt Jr will run a 2002 Major League Baseball All Star scheme at Daytona in the Pepsi 400 in July. The car is mostly red with a baseball bat on the rear quarter panels. Last year Earnhardt Jr ran a MLB All Star scheme last year at the Pepsi 400 with a white scheme, and won the race.(3-26-2002)
IMAGE see a diecast image of the car on my Paint Scheme Gallery.(5-2-2002)
UPDATE: As Major League Baseball readies for the 73rd All-Star Game on July 9 in Milwaukee, Wisc., Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #8 Budweiser car, is preparing for some all-star performances of his own. Budweiser – the “Official Beer” of Major League Baseball (MLB) and NASCAR – will celebrate the 2002 All-Star Game with a special paint scheme on Earnhardt Jr.’s Budweiser car during the NASCAR Winston Cup Series Pepsi 400 race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla., on July 6.. Additionally, the “King of Beers” has unveiled a new 16-ounce Budweiser can available nationwide that features Earnhardt Jr. Earnhardt Jr.’s car paint scheme features a red color and white baseball stitching with the official Budweiser / 2002 MLB All-Star Game logo on the hood. A white #8 appears on the car’s doors and roof, and the “Budweiser” script is displayed on the car’s left and right rear quarter panels.. The sides feature a baseball bat and baseballs while the rear television panel features “Budweiser – Official Beer of Major League Baseball” and “MLB on FOX” graphics. Additionally, Earnhardt Jr.’s racing suit for both races will be red at the top with white “Bud” lettering and “2002” in blue, along with black pants highlighted by gold trim.. The “Bud” script is featured across the chest and on the shoulders, and the 2002 MLB All-Star Game logo appears on the back of the uniform.. Earnhardt Jr.’s helmet is red with the 2002 MLB All-Star Game logo and baseball imagery. To honor Earnhardt Jr.’s achievements in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series, Budweiser is featuring his image on 16-ounce cans this summer.. The commemorative package is available nationwide from May 1 through the summer along with other can panels highlighting Budweiser as “America’s beer” and the brand’s sponsorship of 2002 FIFA World Cup(tm). Budweiser also produced a series of commemorative 16-ounce cans in 2000, highlighting Earnhardt Jr.’s Winston Cup rookie season.(Budweiser PR), also there is a contest, see my Racing Contest page for info.(5-3-2002) - Note on the #54 Toys R Us team UPDATE 2: Rick Goodwin owns the team, the team will run the #54 and will lease Chevy’s and engines from Andy Petree Racing with some Petree team member assistance. The Toys R Us sponsorship is 100% Rick Goodwins and will remain that way. The team is simply leasing cars and engines from the APR organization. Goodwins BGN crew chief Tony Lambert will crew chief Cup car for driver Kevin Grubb, starting at Richmond and a few more Cup races in 2002. Petree is NOT a part owner as some publications have reported.(5-1-2002)
UPDATE: Andy Petree’s sponsorship package with Toys R Us looks like one of those big-buck breakthrough deals he has been hoping for, to put his Asheville operation in better financial shape. The package could be a full ride, including not just a Winston Cup team but also Busch and truck teams.(Winston Salem Journal). Once again the TEAM tells me Petree has no ownership ties at all to this team or the sponsor and is just supplying cars and engines, not sure why it is being reported otherwise..(5-3-2002)
UPDATE 2: from an APR spokesperson – The Toys R Us deal is not an Andy Petree Racing deal or sponsor. Rick Goodwin owns the #54 BGN and Cup car and they are his sponsor. APR has entered in to an agreement to rent him the #33 team, but the entry is under his name and his sponsor. They are concentraing on their BGN effort, and looked to APR to help with this. Its a good deal for APR as it helps out the #55 APR team with extra data and let’s them work with new ideas.(5-3-2002) - Driver of the Year Voting: Thanks to two wins in three IRL starts, Sam Hornish Jr. narrowly edged NASCAR Winston Cup Series leader Sterling Marlin to become the first-quarter winner in Driver of the Year voting. A nationwide panel of 15 racing journalists, and fans voting online, gave Hornish seven first-place votes to six for Marlin. Each panelist selects six drivers in order of preference, and points are awarded on a 9-6-4-3-2-1 basis. Fan voting also counts for one vote. Hornish finished with 107 points. Marlin, who was inexplicably left off one panelist’s ballot, received 102 points. Matt Kenseth was a distant third with 65 points. Despite winning the Daytona 500, Ward Burton did not receive a single vote.(Arizona Republic)(5-3-2002)
- #17 Crew Member needs surgey: Car chief and jackman of the #17 DeWalt Racing crew, Jeff Vandermoss, sustained a lower back injury that requires immediate surgery to repair. While recovering, Russ Strupp, crew chief of the Reiser Enterprises #17 BGN car, will fill in as jackman and assist crew member Dave Smith with car chief duties. Vandermoss is expected to resume his car chief duties approximately two weeks after his surgery, but will be unable to function as jackman for at least two months.(Roush Racing)(5-3-2002)
- Craven Named First Quarter Winner True Value Person of the Year: Ricky Craven, driver of the PPI Motorsports #32 Tide Ford, has been named the recipient of the True Value Person of the Year for the first quarter of 2002. This award is presented to the driver who most exemplifies the strong combination of on-track performance with off-track contributions to society. In the performance category, Craven already has two Bud Pole Position Awards, coming at Rockingham in February and Darlington in March. He also has two top-five finishes in 2002, at Rockingham and Atlanta. As for his off-track contributions, Ricky Craven hosted the 5th annual Snowmobile Ride for Charity in his home state of Maine on January 21st. The charity ride raised over $114,000, which went to benefit charities such as Give Kids The World, Make-A-Wish Foundation, The Marrow Foundation, Children’s Miracle Network and the Travis Roy Foundation. He was also the recipient of the National Motorsports Press Association’s Pocono Spirit Award and received an honorary certificate from the 25th annual PRIDE Conference’s Race Against Drugs Program for spending a day speaking to students at their conference. “It’s truly an honor to receive such recognition, even though I personally don’t relish the attention,” said Craven. “What is most important is the attention it brings to the charitable foundations that I support,” he added.(PR-PPI Motorsports)(5-3-2002)
- Where is Buckshot? Since losing his ride in the #44 Dodge three weeks ago, Buckshot Jones has kept busy working on his family’s farm in Monticello. He says that if the right deal for a Winston Cup ride doesn’t come along, he’ll be happy with whatever turn his career takes. He’s talked to several teams and to some of NASCAR’s power brokers and expects to make a decision soon. “By next week, I’ll have a pretty good reading on whether I continue on in racing or get into land development with my dad,” Jones said. Jones said he wishes his old team the best, but he hasn’t been watching Winston Cup races on TV. “All of the guys on the 44 team are my friends, so I don’t want to see them do bad,” he said. And as far as watching the races, “I was working at the farm and came back to the house about three times and watched for about 10 minutes.”(Atlanta Journal Constitution)(5-3-2002)
- DEI to Honor Singer: Dale Earnhardt Inc. will honor the late Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, of the popular R&B group TLC, this weekend at Richmond by carrying special stripes on all three of the company’s Winston Cup Chevy’s (#’s 1,8,15). Lopes, 30, was killed instantly in a traffic accident in Honduras on April 25. Within days, morgue photos of Lopes were circulated on the internet, striking a nerve within the Earnhardt organization. Teresa Earnhardt, wife of seven-time NASCAR Winston Cup Champion Dale Earnhardt, was drawn into extensive courtroom battles protecting the privacy of her family and memory of her late husband following his death in February of 2001. Several news organizations and a website unsuccessfully tried to obtain autopsy photos of Earnhardt following his fatal accident. “We want to express our deepest sympathy to her family, friends and fans. She has a huge following here at our shop,” said Steve Crisp, Director of Media Relations for the Mooresville, NC-based company. As a trademark, Lopes, an Atlanta, GA native, often performed with a single black stripe under her left eye. The Dale Earnhardt Inc. Chevys, driven by #1-Steve Park, #8-Dale Earnhardt Jr. and #15-Michael Waltrip will each carry a similar stripe under the left headlight. In addition, over the wall pit crew members on all three teams will wear black stripes under their left eye in Saturday night’s event.(DEI PR)(5-3-2002)
- Keller wins at Richmond: #57-Jason Keller picked up his third win of the season Friday night in the Hardee’s 250 at Richmond International Raceway. #46-Ashton Lewis Jr. was second, #60-Greg Biffle was third, #99-Michael Waltrip fourth and #54-Kevin Grubb rounded out the top five. See story at ThatsRacin.com: Keller wins 3rd race of the season and for Results: Hardee’s 250 race results.(5-3-2002)
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