
| Posted: Monday August 14, 2006 10:07AM; Updated: Monday August 14, 2006 10:07AM Dale Earnhardt Jr. won't have to look far to add to his stable of drivers at JR Motorsports next season. Earnhardt Jr. said he had received permission from his Nextel Cup Series sponsor, Budweiser, to run seven Busch races next season. Mark Martin said he hasn't signed a contract in the Truck Series because Ford hasn't made its commitment to the program. Unless Ford elects not to make that commitment, which seems unfathomable, Martin would need to stay with Ford in Cup, too. Up to four Indy Racing League drivers will test in late September on Daytona International Speedway's road course to determine the feasibility of holding part of the league's spring training there in March. The IRL stresses it is not seeking to race at Daytona. League officials walked the 3.56-mile course two weeks ago and could alter the route to include less of the 31-degree-banked, 2.5-mile oval track than for normal road-course events. While it's not yet official that Jeremy Mayfield will drive for Bill Davis Racing next year, Michael Waltrip said the driver won't be part of his three-car program in 2007. Robby Gordon confirmed informal discussions with fellow single-car entries No. 96 Hall of Fame Racing, co-owned by former NFL quarterbacks Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach, and No. 32 PPI Motorsports, owned by Cal Wells, who like Gordon came with a background in Indy-car and off-road racing. David Starr looks you square in the eyes and says: He has not been offered a ride with Robert Yates Racing for next season nor has he talked to anyone at RYR. "I haven't talked to him at all," Starr said. "I don't know where a rumor like that gets started but it's not true, I have not talked to anyone connected with Robert Yates Racing." Bobby Labonte said he didn't expect Petty Enterprises to miss a beat despite the defection of crew chief Todd Parrott to Robert Yates Racing. Greg Steadman is interim crew chief and executive vice president of race operations Robbie Loomis is taking a more hands-on role. Busch series driver David Gilliland will replace Elliott Sadler as the driver of the No. 38 M&M's Ford for Robert Yates Racing, beginning next Sunday in the GFS Marketplace 400 in Brooklyn, Mich. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||