Clint Bowyer is busy assessing his 2012 options. Following a Richard Childress press conference last weekend where Childress seemed to indicate that Bowyer was not returning to RCR for the ninth season.
“You know we’ve tried and we’ve worked really hard to put the deal together to keep Clint. It’s not 100% off the table, but it’s getting tougher and tougher as the day goes by. Clint’s got a couple of really good opportunities there facing him. For us, it just didn’t seem that we could get everything worked out. Clint’s a good friend. I want the best for him. I feel like that we’ve done a lot together, and I hope that if we can’t put him in a car next year that he gets a ride that he’s really good and happy with,” said Childress last weekend in Richmond.
Rumors has it that General Mills is leaving RCR and that Bowyer had found sponsorship for himself, but they had not sold the entire season. As a result, Bowyer was going to be forced to take a pay cut to remain at the team where he’s won 4 Sprint Cup races and made three Chase appearances in the last five seasons.
It appears that Bowyer is assessing his options for next season. Apparently he has a $10-12 million commitment from 5 Hour Energy to sponsor him next season. He has been seen touring Michael Waltrip Racing and Earnhardt Ganassi Racing. There is also the rumor that Bowyer has been in touch with Roush Fenway Racing about the #6 Ford that is currently driven by David Ragan.
Ideally, the Roush Fenway move might make the most sense for Bowyer and everyone involved. David Ragan would likely move over to Richard Petty Motorsports in 2012 where UPS’ sponsorship dollars would likely go further and Ragan’s expectations would be reduced. In the meantime, Roush Fenway Racing has said that they have been negotiating with a handful of new sponsors and perhaps Bowyer’s money from 5 Hour Energy would enable them to full sponsor the #6 car.
Anyway, we will watch this and see what happens. A move to Roush would seem to be the only lateral move he could make from an “A” team to another “A” team. Why you’d willingly give up your seat with one of the top teams in the series to go to a “B” team like Michael Waltrip Racing or Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, albeit occasionally good “B” teams, would boggle my mind.
