SHR was in the market for a sponsor to replace Office Depot, which announced that it was leaving the No. 14 team at the end of the season earlier this year.

Bass Pro Shops was in its last year with Earnhardt Ganassi Racing and the No. 1 Chevy driven by Jamie McMurray.

Bass Pro Shops will continue to sponsor Austin and Ty Dillon in the Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series.

Quicken Loans also recently extended its partnership with SHR for the No. 39 Chevy and Ryan Newman. The US Army announced earlier this season that it would leave the team at season’s end. It appears that Quicken Loans has picked up the majority of the races that the Army gave up.

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• Stewart Haas Racing Re-Signs Newman
• Office Depot Leaving SHR’s No. 14 At Season’s End
• SHR Expects To Field Three Teams In 2013
•  US Army To Leave SHR’s No. 39 At Season’s End

The U.S. Army, which sponsored SHR’s No. 39 Chevy for 12 races this season, announced earlier this month that it was pulling its NASCAR sponsorship, opting to spend that money on other marketing initiatives.

Driver of the No. 39, Ryan Newman is not under contract for the 2013, though SHR would like to bring him back if sponsorship can be worked out. In addition to the Army, the No. 39 has been sponsored by Tornados, Quicken Loans,Outback Steakhouse, Wix Filters, and Aspen Dental. Bass Pro Shops also sponsored the team for one race.

Danica Patrick is slated to join the SHR stable full time in 2013 bringing with her sponsorship from GoDaddy, who has sponsored Patrick in the Indy Car Series, the ARCA Racing Series and the Nationwide Series.

No changes in sponsorship are expected for the No. 14, which is currently sponsored by Office Depot and Mobil 1. Bass Pro Shops appeared on that car for one race, as well.

There are rumors that Newman could leave SHR and join a new team formed by Michael Andretti, though Andretti called a move to the Sprint Cup Series in 2013 highly unlikely.

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But, this is contingent on SHR fielding a third team, and sponsorship being secured. And, as I’m sure you’ve all noticed, Ryan Newman’s No. 39 car has had Haas Automation on the car more than they would like, I’m sure. (Haas Automation is the company owned by SHR part-owner Gene Haas.) Also, Ryan Newman’s performance has been inconsistent, so while Tony Stewart’s team has had success, there’s a chance that a third SHR Chevy team would be as inconsistent as Newman’s.

There is also no guarantee that Truex is on the list of drivers to be in a third SHR Chevy. This season, pending any unforeseen releases, there aren’t very many big name free agents out there. Brian Vickers has been re-signed by Red Bull Racing. Jamie McMurray is expected to be re-signed by Roush Fenway Racing/Yates Racing. And, MWR is working on re-signing David Reutimann. That leaves Brad Keselowski as Truex’s main competition. And, it would seem Keselowski has the edge for a potential third SHR Chevy because of his Hendrick Motorsports connections.

So, if we eliminate the SHR Chevy from the equation, there don’t seem to be any rides out there other than a MWR Toyota. Joe Gibbs Racing could expand to a four car team, but I haven’t heard anything about this being a possibility, so even if it is, Truex can’t hold his breath for it.
 
There is also some speculation that Dale Earnhardt Jr could move his JR Motorsports team to the Sprint Cup Series, as could Kevin Harvick. But neither has expressed anything concrete, thus keeping Truex from being able to rely on either team as an option. Penske Championship Racing has room, but would any driver want to move to a team that might have to change makes? Doubtful considering they might not be as competitive right off the bat. And, like others, PCR has not indicated any plans to expand.

No other teams have seemed ready or willing to expand, so there are certainly slim pickings in the Cup series. Truex could race for any one of the small teams in 2010, but that would almost certainly be career suicide. So, that leaves MWR.

This season, MWR became a legitimate contender. David Reutimann won the rain shortened Coca-Cola 600, the first victory for him and the team. He’s also stayed relatively close to the Chase cutoff and is a legitimate threat to make the Chase.
 
With that team’s performance, someone at MWR – and it could be Michael himself – has to believe that another Toyota could be just as impressive with a different driver. That could mean that Michael Waltrip gives up the NAPA Toyota, or it could mean that he runs a part time schedule with another driver running a full-time schedule in a MWR machine. Either way, MWR officials have to believe that the team is competitive.
 
From Truex’s perspective, he probably views MWR as the most competitive, concrete ride out there. He’s had a rough season at EGR, and he probably feels like it is time for a change. Is MWR that far behind EGR? Probably not. Add in the fact that his brother is a developmental driver for MWR, and the ride becomes much more attractive. I’m sure his brother has filled him in on the operations at MWR, which should give him a good sense as to how competitive the team will be, and how committed they are to winning.

And while I don’t know the reasons for some of the business decisions being made by Teresa Earnhardt, I suspect that pride and stubborness are leading to the mismanagement of the company that Dale Earnhardt Sr built.

Since Sr’s death, Teresa hasn’t had much interest in the sport, often skipping appearances at the track. She’s been called an absentee owner on several occasions.

She let pride get in the way when Dale Earnhardt Jr made his highly publicized bid for ownership in the company. Jr frequently complained that DEI was doing nothing to keep up with the competition. He contended that the team was not purchasing new technology that would help performance, and that the team was not expanding, despite being too big for its shop in N.C.

Teresa was so stubborn and arrogant that she let NASCAR’s most popular driver walk away, and expected the team to survive.

She wouldn’t even let Jr take with him the number he put back on the map. I can understand that the No. 8 has sentimental value to DEI, but it’s not like Jr and Rick Hendrick made an unreasonable offer. I think they also would have agreed to return the number, when Jr was finished with it. But, Teresa went out of her way to ensure that they would not get the number by seeking a percentage of licensing revenue.

Since Jr jumped ship, DEI has been a sinking ship. The team merged with Bobby Ginn Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing. It lost three sponsors in Budweiser, US Army, and Menards. It lost drivers Mark Martin and Paul Menard. And is rumored to be in danger of losing Martin Truex Jr and Bass Pro Shops.

Sadly, things will not improve until Teresa gives up control of the company, or she stops letting foolish pride and personal reason influence business decisions.

Lauletta also said that the EGR will meet this week to discuss whether or not the team will close down the No 8. If that happens, there’s a rumor that Truex Jr could leave the team.

If that happens, Martin Truex Jr could leave the team because he has a clause in his contract stating that he must have two teammates, or he can leave the team.

Add to that, the fact that Bass Pro Shops has a performance clause in its contract, and with Truex 28th in points, the sponsorship could be in jeopardy.

Chevy can also change its support, if EGR does not field three teams.

There’s a rumor circulating in the garage that Truex could replace Joey Logano in Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 20 Home Depot Toyota.

JGR President JD Gibbs said:

Joey’s our guy. We haven’t had any conversations with anyone. We’d like to have someone in line by summer time, but you have to sit down, look at what partner is available, what driver is available and who would be a good fit for the team. We had Hall of Fame [Racing's No. 96] last year and we don’t have it now. So we have room for a fourth team. We’d love to have it.

JGR plans on running a fourth car later this season, the No. 02 Farm Bureau Insurance Toyota for three races later this season.

If Truex were to leave EGR, Bass Pro Shops could leave, too. It could land on Stewart Haas Racing’s No. 39, filling out some races later in the season.

Mark Martin, driving the No. 5 Kelloggs Chevy of Hendrick Motorsports, will start outside row one in second position with a speed of 187.817 mph.

While the rest of the positions will be set by the results of the Gatorade Duels on Thursday, the top three of the ”go or go home” cars are locked in to the Daytona 500. Those drivers are Bill Elliott, Tony Stewart, and Travis Kvapil.

Terry Labonte is also locked in the show because of his past champion’s provisional.  He can race his way in, but if he fails to do that, he will claim the 43rd starting spot.

Rumor has it that now Labonte is being considered for the No. 8, where he will be reunited with his former Petty Enterprises crew cheif Doug Randolph.

Other EGR rumors include that Target may move its sponsorship over to the No. 42 and Juan Pablo Montoya, instead of the No. 41 car, which currently does not have a driver named.

Martin Truex Jr. will be back in the No. 1 with Bass Pro Shops. Aric Almirola, at this point, is expected to drive the No. 8 car, which is currently looking for sponsorship following the departure of the U.S. Army. He may be moved to the No. 41 car, though. Montoya will be sponsored by Wrigley’s Big Red and Juicy Fruit brands, but that sponsorship only covers half of the season.

Almirola said in a NASCAR.com article:

It is something they have kicked around and talked about. But really and truly we want to run four cars. That is the goal because everybody knows to be competitive you have to have a multi-car team. They have said if we have to run three cars it may be a possibility but it is not our goal.

Also, Max Siegel, president of global operations for Dale Earnhardt Inc., which is now EGR, is said to be close to leaving the team. Siegel has been working with DEI owner Teresa Earnhardt about his future plans with the team.