DEI/Ganassi

BobbyFord

BobbyFord

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Report: DEI and Ganassi will merge teams in 2009
By Staff and wire reports
November 12, 2008
04:25 PM EST
MIAMI -- Teresa Earnhardt and Chip Ganassi will combine their slumping race teams next season, an effort to stabilize their organizations in a tough economic time, The Associated Press has learned.

The combined team will be called Earnhardt Ganassi Racing and will field cars for Martin Truex Jr., Aric Almirola, Juan Montoya and a driver yet to be named, two people familiar with the decision told the AP on condition of anonymity because the deal has yet to be announced.

Both organizations have struggled to secure sponsorship this season, forcing the teams to pool resources.

Truex and Almirola will come from Dale Earnhardt Inc.; only Truex's car has full sponsorship for next season.

Montoya has half a season of sponsorship, and Ganassi's flagship No. 41 car has full sponsorship but no driver.

DEI fields Chevrolets, and Ganassi has a Dodge contract. Details of a manufacturer switch still are being worked out as the team is expected to use General Motors.

DEI is losing the Menard's sponsorship on its No. 15 Chevrolet. Driver Paul Menard is leaving the organization to drive a third car for Yates Racing in 2009.

Ganassi shuttled the No. 40 Dodge of Dario Franchitti earlier this year, and longtime driver Reed Sorenson is leaving the No. 41 to drive for Gillett Evernham Racing next year.

The teams' drivers have combined for 210 starts this year and have zero wins, 11 top-five finishes and 28 top-10s.

DEI has only three wins in the past four seasons, while Ganassi drivers have four wins since 2002.
 
CONFIRMED

They will be using Chevys. Announced on Nascar Now just a few min. ago.
 
TexasRaceLady said:
buck, that ground has been rocking and rolling for some time. You're just used to it.

;)
Click to expand...

ROFL!!! I'm surprised Dale Sr. hasn't been doing more than turning over in his grave. I think he'd be haunting a whole lot of people, just because he CAN. ;) But then again, maybe he HAS BEEN. :D
 
Where are they going to find a driver that doesn't have a name yet?
;)
 
1 truex BPS

8 Almirola ???

41 ??? Target

42 Montoya wrigleys/????

howbout just have 3 teams? Put Almirola in the 41, problem solved.
 
PettyBlue said:
Where are they going to find a driver that doesn't have a name yet?
;)
Click to expand...
AJ Allmendinger :beerbang::beerbang::beerbang:

I was listening to the 'Dinger on Sirius Speedway and he says that the what-if scenario of not having a full-time ride in 2009 does not exist in his book.
 
A key player in the merger was Dodge Motorsports, which gave its blessing to team owner Chip Ganassi to pursue the partnership with a Chevy organization. "Number one, we want all of our business partners to be healthy like we want to be healthy,'' said Mike Delahanty, the senior manager of Dodge Motorsports. "Under these unprecedented times there are business solutions that no one ever thought possible. The blessing is, 'Chip, we want you to be healthy and viable long-term. We want you to have a business plan that does that. Bring us a business plan that does that and we'll talk about it, even if means letting him go.''' Sources close to the situation said the teams are expected to compete under the Chevy/General Motors banner of DEI. That would leave Dodge with three cars in Penske Racing, three in Gillett Evernham Motorsports and one or two in Petty Enterprises. Martin Truex Jr. (#1) and Aric Almirola (#8) will remain the drivers from the DEI side and Juan Pablo Montoya (#42) will be kept from Ganassi. The driver of the fourth car (#41) will be named at a future date. AJ Allmendinger, Scott Riggs and Regan Smith are among the candidates for that seat.(ESPN.com)(11-13-2008)
 
I wonder if Regan Smith will be the only "Rookie-of-the-year' that doesn't have a ride the following year. Regan deserves a ride.
 
Plans are in place for Chip Ganassi Racing to switch from Dodge to Chevrolet and be a part of the engine program currently used by Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Richard Childress Racing. DEI, a Chevrolet-based organization, announced on Wednesday it is merging into a four-car team with the Dodge organization of Chip Ganassi Racing in 2009. Officials from both sides said no decision has been made on whether they would be under the Chevrolet or Dodge umbrella. Richard Childress, the owner of RCR and co-owner of the Earnhardt Childress Racing [ECR] engine program, said a meeting is scheduled for Tuesday to hopefully finalize plans to bring Ganassi Racing into the ECR program. Asked if the new Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing would have to be Chevrolet to be a part of that program, he said, "I would think so. ECR will still be around," Childress said. Childress was glad to see the merger between DEI and Ganassi, saying, "It'll make them stronger for sure. If it's put together and works like ECR, it will be great. ECR has worked beyond all of our expectations." Childress didn't rule out the possibility of employees from Ganassi's engine program joining ECR. "I know he's [Ganassi] wanting to keep his engine shop going," he said. "We haven't decided everything yet."(ESPN)(11-16-2008)
 
Did anyone hear what Kenny Wallace said the name of this team should be on Raceday? He is so funny. He said the name of the team should be ChipNDale. LOL
 
It will iteresting to see what Montoya does with that Chevy Power.
 
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