Outgoing Michael Waltrip Racing Principal Owner Rob Kauffman on Friday said that he "had enough of pouring his own money" into the team "without seeing results and announced that MWR would cease operations after this season," according to Bob Pockrass of ESPN.com. Kauffman, who is now buying a stake in Chip Ganassi Racing, said during a press conference at Bristol Motor Speedway, "Michael Waltrip Racing wouldn't have existed through today without substantial and continued financial support from me. From a business standpoint, that didn't make sense any longer. You can't have a top-10 budget and top-10 resources and not be in the top 10 for a sustained period of time. It's a performance-related business. It's all about performance. It's a great sport but a very difficult business model. From a business decision, it just made sense to not go forward with that organization, which is not commercially viable." Kauffman "would not say how much he has invested into the team" since buying it (ESPN.com, 8/21).
TAKING MY TALENTS TO...: MWR driver Clint Bowyer said, "The future for me is uncertain right now. We've got a lot of work to do. ... (Kauffman) made a business decision to move forward, and that direction, as we all know from his previous statements, is the Ganassi organization. For my career and me and my future, it's just unfortunate that Rob and I, our futures didn't align anymore. It's as simple as that." ESPN.com's Pockrass reported Bowyer "is expected to bring" the current sponsor of his No. 15 Toyota, 5-Hour Energy, "with him, just as he did when he went from Richard Childress Racing to MWR" after the '11 season. Although neither Bowyer nor 5-Hour would confirm that they would stick together, Kauffman said that he "expects 5-Hour to join Bowyer in his new home." Any organization that can expand and remain within the four-team NASCAR limit "could take Bowyer, especially if it could pair the 5-Hour Energy sponsorship with another sponsor." There "are several organizations that could be in play for Bowyer" (ESPN.com, 8/21). But in Charlotte, David Scott noted as of now, there "are no openings in any of the top teams' rosters" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 8/22).
