Zastava_101

From Jayski:
Gibbs courting Edwards? am hearing that Carl Edwards, currently the driver of the #99 Roush Fenway Racing Ford, is being courted by Joe Gibbs Racing to take over the #20 Home Depot Toyota ride. Where would that leave current #20 driver, Joey Logano, to the long rumored 4th Joe Gibbs car, no word on who would be the sponsor, if it happens.(6-17-2011)

wildstanglx90

Interesting. I'm a Logano fan since his rookie cup year, so i'm curious to see how this pans out.

01roushstg1

That will be the BIGGEST MISTAKE of HIS Career.

2k7gtcs

Don't do it Mark! Oops. I mean Carl.

socalwrench

Agreed.

m4a1mustang

I don't think so. He knows more about whats going on with Roush than what we do, and if he feels like he has a better shot at winning championships at Gibbs then he's got to do what he's got to do.

socalwrench

I just want to keep him in a Ford.

3Mach1

Jacks problem is that he is a tightwad compared to other owners. He worked Mark Martin like a dog and you see where he is at. Jack had first dibs on Lagano but blew him off. Jack also lost Chase Elliott (Bill Elliotts son) to Rick Hendrick in a driver development program that Rick sponsors and this kid is tearing it up.

Im a Ford fan but not a Jack fan. Ford needs other presence other than him in nascar. As for Carl, he would do just fine with Gibbs imo.

Zastava_101

Jack also lost Jeff Gordon to Hendrick. Jack and Jeff's stepfather had a issue over a crew chief, Jeff's stepfather wanted Ray Evernham (which he got at Hendrick) and Jack wanted his own crew chief.

Not to mention the big mess he had with Kurt Busch.

I dunno, Carl always seemed like a Ford guy ... I know it's a part of a job, but he talked more about Ford than any other driver talked about the manufacturer they're driving for. It would really suck if he starts driving a Toyota now.

Zastava_101

Gibbs has a better Nationwide team, but I don't think he's ahead at Sprint series. Edwards' currently 1st at standings with more Top 5s and Top 10s than anyone else and this week's race is at Michigan, which is a track where Fords usually perform really well.
So I don't think its championship chances that play a major role in Carl's decision, since Carl is already driving for one of top teams in the NASCAR and his championship chances are not any lower at #99 team that they would've been with a #20 team.

3Mach1

I forgot about Gordon. Kurt is not the kind of guy I would want working for me no matter how good he is so I give Jack a pass on that one. I doubt Carl would leave anyway at least right now.

m4a1mustang

I think the Gibbs organization is championship caliber but I just think its current drivers haven't had any luck this season. Denny almost won it last year but he had some bad luck and simply wasn't quite ready as a driver.

Plus, throughout racing history there have always been drivers that have left a seemingly #1 organization to go to a lesser one, which they succeeded at. Most notable would be Michael Schumacher leaving Benneton after two championships to go to ferrari which was in the dumps at the time... And that ended up getting him 5 more titles.

I also agree that Jack is a tightwad. Carl is probably worth 10-15 million or more a year and i doubt he gets close to that. I don't think any of us would stick around at our current jobs if we had the opportunity to make more money elsewhere.

Re the Ford speak, i think that is Carl just doing his best to tote the company line... He has always been great on the sponsorship side... VERY sponsor friendly driver.

jacostang

I'm not even going to read this thread.......

Zastava_101

I'm not a Kurt Busch fan, but he was a 2004 champion driving #97 Ford for Roush Racing. I would rather see him as a champion driving a Ford than watching Jimmie Johnson winning the championship again.

Zastava_101

Considering the fact that Hendrick (and sponsors) are paying close to $45 mill per year for Earnhardt, I think Edwards is worth much more than that. If Edwards leaves Roush he will take Aflac and Subway with him for sure ... and UPS is also looking to leave.

3Mach1

Im not a fan of Hendrick but he is not afraid to spend the money. Biggest mistakes he has made is letting Kyle Busch(like him or not) go and hiring Junebug who has not performed with the best equipment available. He is doing a lot better this year and of course sells a lot of t shirts. If Jack is smart he will get out his check book to keep Carl. The guy can drive and I hate to keep seeing good drivers leave Ford. Why Jack hired and has kept David Reagan around I will never know.

jacostang

I dont believe Carl will Leave, at least I hope not but there are some really good Ford drivers coming up.... Bayne and Stenhouse are rising up and the best thing would be the 21 team step up full time with Bayne and RPM add a 3rd car for Stenhouse...

Zastava_101

UPDATE: Ford and Roush Fenway Racing are feeling a sense of urgency to re-sign Carl Edwards. For the last month, Edwards has been rumored to be headed to Joe Gibbs Racing. Earlier this season, JGR president J.D. Gibbs acknowledged that the organization would be interested in talking to Edwards if sponsorship could be acquired for a fourth team. Roush Fenway Racing president Steve Newman called the Edwards' negotiation "a slow and steady process." Both Roush and Ford have worked diligently to entice Edwards to remain in the blue-oval camp but are starting to feel the pressure from Toyota. "We have constant conversations with Carl," Newmark said. "I still remain cautiously optimistic that we'll get something done, but as we've talked about before, the process that we're going through, we want to make sure that we have everything in order going forward and Carl's main focus is on making sure he's going to a place where he can win championships. Newmark understands that Edwards is shopping the market and "has no issue with him engaging in discussions." Now the challenge for Roush comes in offering the most competitive package for Edwards and his future. At the same time, Newmark has the challenge of locking up Roush sponsors Aflac, UPS and Crown Royal. Newmark locked down both 3M and Greg Biffle for a multi-year deal in April. Newmark is not actively seeking a replacement for Edwards -- yet. With Trevor Bayne and Ricky Stenhouse in the pipeline, there's really no need to.(Fox Sports)(6-19-2011)

Zastava_101

Well, that depends. From racing point of view, yeah, Junior is really overrated, but he brings more money to Hendrick than any other driver could, including Kyle Busch. Same thing with Danica Patrick and JR Motorsports (which is owned by Junior) in Nationwide series. Two most overrated drivers in NASCAR history driving for the same team.

Jack is known to bring young guys to the team who stay for a long time. Guys like Martin, Burton, Kenseth, Edwards, Ku. Busch, Biffle and now Ragan. I still think Jack should've kept McMurray and get rid of Ragan last year.

Zastava_101

I don't think either one of them is ready for full time yet. They should drive few Nationwide seasons before going full time at Sprint series.