Wasn't it just last week that Richard Childress Racing (RCR) announced that Dave Blaney would be driving the #30 AOL sponsored Chevrolet for the remainder of the 2004 season? Actually it was at Pocono on July 31st when Richard Childress stated that Blaney would pilot the #30 for the rest of the season "barring unforeseen circumstances."
Those unforeseen circumstances have arrived. A long anticipated deal between Jeff Burton and RCR materialized with Burton signing a three year contract to pilot the #30 beginning with next weekend's event at Michigan International Speedway. So much for Dave Blaney, again! Blaney hasn't had a lot of luck keeping rides; he lost his ride with Bill Davis racing in the #23 Dodge at the end of last season, and had been bouncing around as an interim driver for teams that need a fill-in or substitute driver.
Burton, the 1994 Cup racing's MAXX Rookie of the Year, has been in the Roush Racing's #99 Ford for the past eight seasons. He started out in the Cup Series racing the #8 Ford for the Stavola Brothers during the 1994 - 95 seasons.
Since joining up with the Roush organization, Burton has scored 17 victories, 87 top five finishes, 142 top ten finishes, and has won two Bud Pole Awards. His most recent victory was in the Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix during the 2001 season. His best years with Roush were in 1999 when he scored six wins, and in 2000 when he scored four. From 1997 to 2000 he finished the seasons in the top five in the driver's point's standings, with his best year in 2000 when he finished third to Bobby Labonte (1st) and Dale Earnhardt (2nd).
Burton lost his Citgo sponsorship on the #99 Ford at the end of last season and had been driving the entry without a sponsor this season. The #99 carried the Excide Battery sponsorship between 1996 and the 2001 season when Citgo took over. In the 21 events he has entered this season, he has scored three top ten finishes and one top five finish, with his best finish of fourth at Dover and his best start of 6th at Chicago. Burton has used one provisional start this season with an average starting position of 24.3 and an average finishing position of 21.2.
This move elated Craftsman Truck Series driver Carl Edwards beyond belief. Edwards, driver of Roush Racing's #99 Ford truck, was overjoyed and really surprised earlier this season when Jack Roush named him as the replacement in the #6 Viagra Ford when Mark Martin retired, possibly after next season. You can just about imagine how he is feeling now after being called up to take the vacated seat in the #99 Cup car for the remainder of the season beginning with the Michigan event on the weekend of August 22nd.
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