BREAKING NEWS: Mears out at Red Bull Racing

ted@economy said:
Hell of an opportunity there for someone. Who ?
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i'd like to see aric almirola in it. good car, not a lot of expectations (better than mears). i just like the guy and would like to see him get a decent shot in cup.
 
I don't think he'll ever be considered top 10 but Scott Riggs knows how to drive.
 
SlowNeasy said:
i'd like to see aric almirola in it. good car, not a lot of expectations (better than mears). i just like the guy and would like to see him get a decent shot in cup.
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I like Aric. I also like this idea.
 
Labonte would work too, always have that provisional to use as well.
 
kkfan91 said:
agreed oh brother really whats with the love affair for a guy who hasn't been competitive since 2003
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I think we can all agree that he wouldn't take his damn teammate out, for one....and he's pretty much guaranteed to start the race, and thats all red bull should be looking to do is stay up in the top 35 with that car until Vickers gets back.
And theres absolutely no doubt in my mind he'd perform better than mears, anywhere.....
 
MoMike said:
I think we can all agree that he wouldn't take his damn teammate out, for one....and he's pretty much guaranteed to start the race, and thats all red bull should be looking to do is stay up in the top 35 with that car until Vickers gets back.
And theres absolutely no doubt in my mind he'd perform better than mears, anywhere.....
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I'd take Mears over Labonte, Labonte is done like dinner that caught fire burned the house down and required 3 fire departments
 
MoMike said:
I think we can all agree that he wouldn't take his damn teammate out, for one....and he's pretty much guaranteed to start the race, and thats all red bull should be looking to do is stay up in the top 35 with that car until Vickers gets back.
And theres absolutely no doubt in my mind he'd perform better than mears, anywhere.....
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I think it would be impossible to run outside of the top 35 with the penality handed down the other day...all you have to do beat is Robbie Gordon.:D
 
I disagree. While Labonte is no longer going to win races, he's not going to make the same mistakes Mears did and he's also running in some inferior equipment right now. Like was mentioned earlier, the goal is to look for someone who can keep the car in the top 35 in points for 2011 when Vickers returns.
 
Just saw from NSSN:

Reed Sorenson has been named the driver of the No. 83 Red Bull Racing Toyota for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway June 27.
 
MRM said:
I disagree. While Labonte is no longer going to win races, he's not going to make the same mistakes Mears did and he's also running in some inferior equipment right now. Like was mentioned earlier, the goal is to look for someone who can keep the car in the top 35 in points for 2011 when Vickers returns.
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Atleast someone gets it. Amen MRM
 
I don't understand why people are giving up on Bobby Labonte. The only thing that keeps him from being cometitive is the car he's in. No way will I believe that he no longer has the skill to win. He's just in a position that keeps him out of a competitive car. Put Denny Hamlin or Kyle Busch, or Jimmie Johnson in the cars that he's been driving and you will see the same results. What hurts him these days is his age. 20 years ago, 46 would not be considered to old to be out there winning races and it shouldn't today. Dale Earnhardt win 6 races after he turned 46, and remember Dale was in top notch cars. Bobby Labonte left Gibbs after winning 21 race, but none since he left that team. Bobby only had two years while driving for Gibbs when he didn't win a race. Getting older doesn't necessarily make a driver worse. But these days, with the infusion of youth getting the better cars, the older drivers have to be very lucky to find a seat in a premo car like Mark Martin has done. Bobby Labonte can still win races, but not in the equipment he is in.
 
buckaroo said:
I don't understand why people are giving up on Bobby Labonte. The only thing that keeps him from being cometitive is the car he's in. No way will I believe that he no longer has the skill to win. He's just in a position that keeps him out of a competitive car. Put Denny Hamlin or Kyle Busch, or Jimmie Johnson in the cars that he's been driving and you will see the same results. What hurts him these days is his age. 20 years ago, 46 would not be considered to old to be out there winning races and it shouldn't today. Dale Earnhardt win 6 races after he turned 46, and remember Dale was in top notch cars. Bobby Labonte left Gibbs after winning 21 race, but none since he left that team. Bobby only had two years while driving for Gibbs when he didn't win a race. Getting older doesn't necessarily make a driver worse. But these days, with the infusion of youth getting the better cars, the older drivers have to be very lucky to find a seat in a premo car like Mark Martin has done. Bobby Labonte can still win races, but not in the equipment he is in.
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:beerbang:
 
buckaroo said:
20 years ago, 46 would not be considered to old to be out there winning races and it shouldn't today.
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i agree with everything you said but that was 20 years ago. times have changed, the sport has changed, everything has changed. even you and i have changed. <g> change isn't always good but you can't stop it.
 
Mark Martin seems to be doing pretty well - considering his advanced years ;)
 
buckaroo said:
I don't understand why people are giving up on Bobby Labonte. The only thing that keeps him from being cometitive is the car he's in. No way will I believe that he no longer has the skill to win. He's just in a position that keeps him out of a competitive car. Put Denny Hamlin or Kyle Busch, or Jimmie Johnson in the cars that he's been driving and you will see the same results. What hurts him these days is his age. 20 years ago, 46 would not be considered to old to be out there winning races and it shouldn't today. Dale Earnhardt win 6 races after he turned 46, and remember Dale was in top notch cars. Bobby Labonte left Gibbs after winning 21 race, but none since he left that team. Bobby only had two years while driving for Gibbs when he didn't win a race. Getting older doesn't necessarily make a driver worse. But these days, with the infusion of youth getting the better cars, the older drivers have to be very lucky to find a seat in a premo car like Mark Martin has done. Bobby Labonte can still win races, but not in the equipment he is in.
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If Bobby is still so good, why hasn't Penske, yates, Stewart or Hendrick talked to him? Just wondering.....
 
Boy I don't think this age thing has anything to do with driving the race car . It's all about attracting sponsorship dollars with a young , good looking well spoken face. Look at the Hendrick line up with Gordon , Johnson , Kahne , and Junior .Line those four up in a beauty contest. Do ya think a Buddy Baker would fit in there ? Oh ,and by the way they can drive a race car too...bonus.
 
Magnethead said:
IIRC wasn't there a fallout between Bobby and somebody else? Or am I thinking wrong?
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i don't recall bobby ever having a fallout with anyone. my take of him going to petty was that he thought he could actually help bring petty back to some of it's former glory. i think his values fit the petty organization well but he was sold a bill of goods that they were serious about becoming contenders. that would have taken a lot of money and richard's not one to let his money stray too far from his wallet. <g> in short, he made one of the worst career moves ever in nascar.
 
Magnethead said:
IIRC wasn't there a fallout between Bobby and somebody else? Or am I thinking wrong?
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Yes, it was the ping pong crew chief problem. When Jimmy Makar was promoted, they had three crew chiefs in less than 2 years. It looked like things were going good when Fatback McSwain was CC, but he had a fallout with a crew member (physical altercation) and was fired. They were 6th in the points at the time. The new crew chief? None other than Steve Addington. Things promptly went south from there.

He is a very picky driver when it comes to his equipment and that makes him notoriously hard to work with. If things aren't perfect, he can't seem to rise above. How that plays with riding around in junky equipment, I don't know. I personally thought that when the 96 team aligned with Yates that it would be better. Who knows? TRG is using RCR equipment so maybe their might be hope if a sponsor is found. But there again, 46 years old in racing years is ancient by todays standards and accepting rides in lackluster equipment won't bring you much, either.


Back to the story. Red Bulls decision to vacate Casey Mears not surprising, but Reed Sorensen is. I think Brian is going to have all new sheet metal and race cars after this is all over with!!!
 
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