“Tommy has built a really good organization from the ground up in a really short amount of time,” said Reutimann. “One of the things I like about Tommy and what’s refreshing about him is that he is just a racer. There are lots of things he could be doing, but instead he is at the shop every day working hard to build the organization from the ground up. There are not a lot of true racers in the garage, and he is one of them. It’s the way I was raised with my Dad, so we are on the same page. I’m really looking forward to the season to see what we can do.”
TBR competed in all 36 Sprint Cup races last season, and accomplished their main goal by securing a spot in the Top-35 in Owner Points. Blaney finishe third in the October event at Talladega Superspeedway, and TBR also fielded a second car for veteran Geoff Bodine in five races during the second half of the season.
“Reutimann will be a great addition to our program and to Dave Blaney,” said Baldwin. “Last season, we met our goal of running the entire schedule and making the top-35 in points. This season, our goal is to continue our progress on the competition side. Having two veteran drivers in Reutimann and Blaney is a very important step in our program’s growth.
Sources say TBR has approximately 26 races sold for Reutimann in 2012, with efforts underway to secure additional backers for both drivers.
“We are still working on funding for next year, but having a car guaranteed in the first five races -- including the Daytona 500 -- is a big step for our team,” Baldwin said. “Although Golden Corral will not return in 2012, they were very happy with the exposure they received. We hope they have shown other companies the value of our program and that our program will once again align with their business objectives.”
Details regarding sponsorship, car numbers and team members will follow in the upcoming weeks.
A good man lands on his feet. Great start to the new year.
ReplyDeleteDoug from NJ
Sorry to hear Golden Corral is not coming back. I suppose today's show will be riddled with boycott GC calls. Just have a nice dog.
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to see both Blaney and Reuti back on the track!
ReplyDeleteI am glad to see he got a ride.
ReplyDeleteVery cool, where does Tommy get his cars from or does he build everything himself?
ReplyDeleteThat is the best news. I already like Tommy and Dave, so this teaming up with David is just great. So glad for David and Buzzie can keep on racing, LOL.
ReplyDeleteYEAH!
ReplyDeleteProbably the most classless thing done to another driver was the release of Rutty by MWR. For a guy whose Cup career was based on loyalty, Mikey sure has done David wrong. This guy did everything he could for his team, including working for peanuts until MWR got on its feet. He took it on the chin in all those stupid Aarons commercials and hung in there when the “GREAT CHEATING” at Daytona almost closed MWR before it started. This driver has developed a following with loyal fans that watched his family race for decades, never a dispute involving another driver, and truly a fan favorite wherever they go. I wish David nothing but the best and knowing Tommy Baldwin with Philippe Lopez, Reutimann should show the racer in them all. Kudos all around Sir.
ReplyDeleteReutimann is just the nicest guy & I am sooooooooo thrilled with this news!!!!!! I understand the politics of the business, whether I agree with them or not... Needless to say I was very disappointed when MWR cut him lose before his contract ended....
ReplyDeleteHere's hoping Reuti wins the Daytona 500 like Trevor Bayne did last year after being let go from MWR.... WOULDN'T THAT BE FUNNY?????
Al, Tommy gets most of his cars from either RCR or EGR. I know for sure he has two cars Juan Montoya used to race. They have chassis #802 that Juan used at the first two concrete tracks in 2009, and they also have chassis #910 which Juan used at Homestead Miami in 2009 when he and Stewart wrecked eachother. That chassis made a comeback in 2010 for races at Las Vegas, Darlington, both Pocono's, and Kansas. It earned a top 5 at Darlington and was in position to win at Pocono before a pitroad miscue that ultimately caused the near implosion of the #42 team (that Pocono race was the week after they blew their sure win at Indy).
ReplyDeleteYes and to add to the above comment I believe Tommy said his team just started building their own chassis in 2011 on a prototype basis from the sounds of it.
ReplyDeleteGotta respect TBR for what they've done. Reminds you of the old school teams that started the same way. (RCR,HMS)
Have been waiting for such good news!!! Reutimann is a class act and he deserved better "treatment" from Waltrip. This is such a feel good moment, hard to believe. Best of luck to Reutimann.
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