The irony of all the noise around Stewart is that this year’s free agent pool – drivers whose contracts expire after 2008 – is the richest and deepest in years.
Tom Jensen
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Posted April 24, 2008
Harrisburg, N.C.
NASCAR officals took the car of Martin Truex Jr. after finding it too high in post race inspection after Chicagoland (Jason Smith/Getty Images Photo)
Word that Tony Stewart is talking with Haas CNC Racing about becoming a possible part-owner and driver for the team, sent tongues wagging in the NASCAR community.
But Stewart is under contract with Joe Gibbs Racing, his employer for his entire NASCAR career, through the end of next year, meaning the odds of him making any change prior to 2010 are slim and none, with none being more likely.
JGR already has made it clear that there is no way the team would release Stewart early from his contract and, in fact, wants to sign him to an extension that would take him through his retirement.
The irony of all the noise around Stewart is that this year’s free agent pool – drivers whose contracts expire after 2008 – is the richest and deepest in years, with some big moves likely to take place for next year.
At Roush Fenway Racing, Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle, two proven championship-caliber drivers, are in the final years of their respective contracts. According to a report in the trade publication Sports Business Journal, sponsor Office Depot is in the midst of decided whether to re-up as Edwards’s primary sponsor, with UPS said to be eager to sign with Roush and Edwards, if Office Depot passes.
Edwards was also said to have been a candidate for the fourth car that will be added by Richard Childress Racing next year.
Biffle has publicly indicated that he would likely remain with Roush Fenway Racing, one of the elite teams in the sport.
