Maybe Biffle won’t stay at Roush after all
Quote selected text Published May 13th, 2008 in NASCAR News
Greg Biffle is sounding a little less certain about his desire to remain at Roush Fenway Racing. The driver said during Monday’s Nationwide Series test at Lowe’s Motor Speedway that he doesn’t know if Roush Fenway Racing is where he wants to be next season, citing a consistent pattern of team-inflicted mistakes.
“You know, you get frustrated, and you look at that last race, and you say: ‘Gosh, I don’t want to do that anymore. I want to do something different,’” said Biffle, who led 95 laps in Saturday’s Dodge Challenger 500 at Darlington Raceway before a broken timing belt in his car’s engine relegated him to a 43rd-place finish.
“But you look around the garage, everybody has these issues. Everybody has these problems. A timing belt can fail on anybody’s race car. You can have a loose wheel at any time. You can have a problem with the transmission. All these guys have had these issues in the past. I just don’t want to continue to have them year after year.”
Biffle, whose contract with Roush Fenway expires at the end of 2008, said as recently as two weekends ago at Richmond International Raceway that he fully intends to return to the team in 2009.
But the driver of the No. 16 Ford was highly critical of his team at Darlington for leaving two loose wheels on his car. One of those wheels forced Biffle to make an unscheduled green flag pit stop, giving up the lead.
“It’s easier to accept when it’s a Denny Hamlin situation, where he dominates at Richmond and he gets a flat tire,” Biffle said, referring to the woes that cost Hamlin an almost certain win at Richmond two weekends ago after leading all but one of the first 382 laps.
“That can happen, and it did happen, and a driver can accept that. … But when it’s other issues it makes it harder inside to take because stuff will happen. I don’t know. It’s one of things. You feel frustrated, but you’ve got to continue to give it 100 percent effort all the time.”
- Biffle looks to stay at Roush Racing
- Biffle likely to stay at Roush
- Biffle intends to stay at Roush Fenway until he retires
- Report: Gibbs actively looking for replacement for Stewart
- Biffle wants to stay at Roush
Ok so lets take the 6 (well 7 with the second DEI car) open seats (well hypothetically open)
1/01 DEI
12 PRS
20 JGR
33 RCR General Mills
41 CGRFS
43 PE
Ok so we have 6/7 potential rides, and as of now only one of them has a Sponsor for next year (if those sponsors follow their drivers if those drivers leave)
Ok so lets throw out all the technical details and figure out what car he will be in next year. I rank them in this order of probability.
33 RCR General Mills
1/01 DEI
20 JGR
41 CGRFS (possibly 40 car instead)
12 PRS
43 PE
The 33 would look good if Burton can win the championship so that the 31 points can be transfered to the 33
If he has half a brain, he’ll be gone from Roush at the end of the year. Assuming he is gone, I see it like this. And it really goes for any free agents coming into next season:
I’d have to imagine that the 33 and the 20 (assuming Smoke gets out of that deal) are 1a and 1b on the list. Both teams are VERY strong and traditionally good, so you know they’ll be good in the future. After that, DEI might get the next slot since they are running Chevys, then the dodge teams after that, I would think maybe Penske, then Petty, and finally Ganassi.
Kurt busch and biffle aren’t best friends and chemistry probably won’t develop
the same can be said about RCR in the fact they were fighting at Bristol
one year
Petty enterprises isn’t really going anywhere, and Bifflr wants to win championships now. Ganassi cars have struggled for years so thats not a viable option knowing what I said previously is true. Gibbs I’d the only viable option unless hendrick cuts loose Mears
Ill will bet all of you he will go to Joe Gibbs Racing, and you can take that to the bank.
Howie motorsports photography wrote:
But I thought everyone agrees that a 4th JGR ride is awaiting Logano whenever they bring him up. I guess they could put Biffle in that 4th car, make Smoke stick out his contract through ‘09 and then let Logano have the #20 when and if Smoke does leave at the end of his contract…. Or let Smoke go now and put Logano and Biffle in the cars this year. Either way, I think Biffle would be a good fit with JGR in any car!
Myself i wouldnt want to look shrub everyday, i would have to hit him everytime i saw him just to wipe that smurk off his face.
Biffle could go to the 96 which is a gibbs car anyway you look at it. he will be with gibbs, bet u.
colonel wrote:
Yeah Biffle could go to that car, or he could go to the Furniture Row car which is a Hendrick Car anyway you look at it.
I guess the point I’m trying to make is just because a team has top notch EQ, doesn’t mean they will preform well.
Gibbs, HMS or RCR would be great.
wrote:
he wont be at Hendrick or RCR