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| Penske Racing's Tim Cindric |
“He’s someone
we’ve had our eye on for a while,” said Cindric. “He has obviously had some
good results, and he’s got a great pedigree. As we look at things going
forward, we have to evaluate some of these young guys. We have two good young
guys (already) in our camp, and Parker Kligerman and Dakoda Armstrong who we’ve
had our eye on for a while. To a certain extent, you can’t have too many of
these guys, so we’ve decided to give (Blaney) a shot.”
He said that
while Blaney’s signing means fewer Nationwide Series races for Kligerman this
season, it is not an indication that the team has shifted focus.
“(Kligerman) is still going
to run Chicago for us next week,” he said. “We have a lot invested in Parker
and he’s done a good job for us. He’s won a lot of ARCA races for us, and sat
on the pole in his first-ever Nationwide race. He’s achieved a lot, but when we
sat down and talked with him at the beginning of the year, he knew Brad Keselowski
was going to run about 20 (Nationwide) races for us in the No. 22 and Jacques
Villeneuve was going to run a couple of the road courses. Beyond that, there
were really no promises. Parker knew he would have some opportunities, but he
also knew we might put someone else in the car.
“The game didn’t really
change, it just evolved.”
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| Ryan Blaney |
Cindric said Blaney has “a
good mentor in his father,” Sprint Cup Series veteran Dave Blaney. “Being
around them the last few weeks, he certainly doesn’t `baby’ Ryan, that’s for
sure. He’s making his kid tough, and that’s the way they need to be.
“I feel like Ryan’s on the
right track,” said Cindric. “There are a lot of people talking about him right
now, and in the Nationwide Series, if you don’t have a Cup driver, you’d better
have someone that’s attractive to sponsors. Not to say Parker’s not, but when
you listen to the noise that’s being made out there about people that are
non-Cup drivers and not yet winning races, Ryan’s name is right there at the
top of the list.
“At the end of the day, our
responsibility is to make sure we have solid sponsorship to continue our
program, and Ryan is one of the guys who is attracting that right now.”
Cindric also said he is
surprised that a test of driver AJ Allmendinger’s “B sample” will not take
place until early next week, adding, “We want closure as fast as anyone else in
this situation.” He said he has not spoken with Allmendinger about the process,
because “this is really between AJ, his group and NASCAR. There’s nothing we’re
going to do to prod it along, he said. “There’s more at stake than whether he
runs the next race or not. Our stance is that his career is on the line in a
lot of ways, and that it’s best that he handle that without any pressure from
us.
“We thought we’d have some
closure at least by the end of this week,” he admitted. “But if that’s the way
the process works, we’re prepared to deal with it going forward and see how it
all turns out.”
Characterizing Allmendinger as
someone who has “one more pitch left,” Cindric said he understands the
importance of proceeding cautiously. “He
has to be sure he makes all the right decisions and puts the right processes in
place. If it was me in that position, I’d
make sure all my I’s were dotted and my T’s were crossed. I would want to
understand exactly what I was up against, and what the processes and procedures
were.
“AJ is first class,” Cindric
said. “After Brad won the Nationwide race (in New Hampshire), AJ was the first
person to text me and say how happy he was for the team. He’s continuing to get
stronger on his front, and trying to get through this the best he can.”
Photo Credits: LAT Photographic, ryanblaney.com
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