Stewart in a Chevy at Texas?

[MountaineerTom]

From Jayski's

 

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After more than a year of wrangling unsuccessfully with NASCAR over rules that he says have kept Pontiac teams at a disadvantage, #20 Joe Gibbs crew chief Greg Zipadelli says a switch to Chevrolet appears in the cards: "It is being built as we speak," Zipadelli said. "You'll see it in about four weeks." That would appear to mean that Tony Stewart could be in a Monte Carlo for the April 7 race at Texas. The politics of the whole situation, Zipadelli said, was key. By switching to Chevrolet he said he and fellow crew chief Jimmy Makar wouldn't feel such underdogs in negotiations with NASCAR, because they would then have Chevy heavyweights Richard Childress and Rick Hendrick on their side.(Winston Salem Journal)(3-2-2002)

[JonesNTN]

Looks like Gibbs is coming back to what he should have never left. Personally I think this sounds like a bluff to get some things done.

[MountaineerTom]

Personally I think this sounds like a bluff to get some things done.

It just might be.  ;)

[antig24]

yeah, this makes me wonder

[General Lee 01]

Like NASCAR's gonna get things done just because Gibbs is switching? HA! I don't think so.

 

 

You think they'll give a rat's ass if Gibbs switches?

[antig24]

I've heard that pontiacs gonna get a new body in 2003

[JonesNTN]

I find it hard to believe that GM keeps funding support for 2 different body styles, I wouldn't doubt that that either the new style will be really close to the Monte Carlo or they will phase out the Grand Prix program for Winston Cup, maybe to focus on BGN? But even that seems unlikely to me. Pontiac either needs to crap or get off the pot when it comes to their Nascar program. W/o Gibbs, they have nothing.

[MountaineerTom]

I hope Pontiac doesn't go anywhere.  I actually hated seeing Olds and Buick get out when they did.  I'd ultimately like to see Buick, Lincoln, Cadillac, and Mercury (although I'm not sure off hand what they have that's similar to the current cup cars) back in the sport.  

 

Another thought, I wonder why GMC is not in the Truck series?

[JonesNTN]

I think GMC sponsors salt-flat racing don't they? I like to see several Makes in Nascar also. I was a Big Olds fan(Harry Gant) for a while and before I knew better I used to be a Wallace fan while he drove Pontiacs. Although I really didn't mind seeing Buick go. That is the division that GM should have given the AXE.

[Kansas Kid]

You think they'll give a rat's ass if Gibbs switches?

I can assure you Pontiac doesn't want them to switch, especially when they are developing a new body for next year.  The Gibbs teams basically hold the Pontiac division up in Winston Cup, so if they leave you can bet Pontiac will probably leave the series.  I bet GM doesn't want that, and neither does NASCAR.

 

But honestly, the Pontiac teams are not in that bad of shape aero wise.  Tony probably had the best car at Daytona, they both ran well last week, and it wouldn't suprise me to see Tony win tomorrow.  They are simply trying to get Nascar to make a change that isn't warrented, just like Ford and Dodge did at Daytona.

[JonesNTN]

You would think that GM would have a better chance with the Manufacturers Championship with 18 and 20 in Chevys, but I guess the exposure for the GP's are worth it.

[MountaineerTom]

Update

Pontiac race teams appear to be growing increasingly frustrated with what they consider to be a lack of regard for their rules concerns from NASCAR. Joe Gibbs Racing, for instance, has built a Chevrolet Monte Carlo which, for now at least, will be used only for purposes of evaluating it against the Pontiac Grand Prix models used by drivers [#18] Bobby Labonte and [#20] Tony Stewart. Since those cars are so similar, the GM official said, the Gibbs operation wanted to also have a Chevrolet in house so it could understand how the new Pontiac would compare to all possible competition. While a GM official said Saturday such a model change is not likely, there apparently have been discussions within the Gibbs operation about whether it should switch to Chevrolets in the future if it doesn’t think Pontiac is getting a fair shake.(ThatsRacin.com)(3-3-2002)

AND Yesterday, reports surfaced with Tony Stewart's crew chief talking about adding a Chevrolet to the team's arsenal. Asked about the comments, Jimmy Makar, crew chief for Bobby Labonte, said the team has built a Monte Carlo to take to the wind tunnel and compare with the Pontiacs driven by Stewart and Labonte. He added the team has no plans to race the car at this point. The problem isn't a Gibbs issue with Pontiac. It's a larger problem with the sanctioning body. Pontiac has only five teams competing full time in the series, compared with 15 Fords, 12 Chevys and 10 Dodges. When it comes time for crew chiefs to storm the NASCAR trailer and demand changes for their cars, the Pontiacs don't have nearly as much leverage. So teams such as Joe Gibbs Racing want to see what separates the Pontiac from other makes before pushing their arguments further. It certainly isn't a new practice to build other cars, but is it one that has more meaning within the Gibbs' operation. Is he [Makar] considering running a car other than a Pontiac? Makar currently is developing the 2003 Pontiac. GM's Terry Laise said the project is on track, and the car should be submitted well before NASCAR's deadline. The question now is, who will be driving this new car? "We're not going to race anything other than a Pontiac right now," Makar said. "We're just getting educated."(Richmond Times Dispatch)(3-3-2002)

[Elwood]

I hated to see Olds and Buick leave too.  I liked the diversity.  Especially when Gant was winning.  I also hated to see Rusty leave Pontiac, that left me with my Favorite in a F**d.

 

I really hope Pontiac sticks around.  But from what we usually see in the results, I wouldn't blame Gibbs for switching.

[Kansas Kid]

I'm sorry boys, I smell some major BS on this one.  I would hate to see what Tony would be doing today with a car that wasn't at such a disadvantage.   :sarcasm:

[General Lee 01]

Well Tony almost ran away with it today, I wonder what he would've said in his "Million Dollar Victory lane Interview". I assure you, it would've been interesting.

 

 

Note to Kyle, when I said "They" I was talking a bout NASCAR, not Pontiac.