THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 18, 1996 TAG: 9608180192
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BROOKLYN, MICH. LENGTH: 71 lines
This is the time of the racing season when people notice who is talking to whom in the Winston Cup garage.
So when car owner Michael Kranefuss was seen with his arm around driver Jeremy Mayfield at Michigan International Speedway on Saturday, and both were smiling broadly, it seemed to be more than just a chat.
Did that mean Kranefuss had signed Mayfield to drive his No. 37 Ford Thunderbird in 1997, as rumored? ``It means nothing,'' Kranefuss said.
Mayfield, asked where he'll be in 1997, replied with a big smile, ``I don't know.''
And so it went in the garage here this weekend. Rumors were flying and changing by the hour, but as of the end of the day Saturday, little had happened.
The hot report Saturday afternoon was that car owner Felix Sabates had scheduled a news conference following the late-afternoon IROC race to announce that Indy-car driver Robby Gordon would replace Kyle Petty in the No. 42 car next year.
That press conference was canceled at about 5:15 p.m., but Sabates confirmed his plans to hire Gordon to a long-term contract. Sabates also has laid the groundwork to switch from the Pontiac Grand Prix to the Chevrolet Monte Carlo in 1997.
``If you look at Robby's record since he was 6 years old, he's won in everything he's ever driven,'' Sabates said. ``He's young, he's eager and he wants to win. He's a young gun and he's more like Kyle than any other driver I've talked with.''
Another hot rumor was that Ken Schrader, after a winless half-decade with Rick Hendrick, was leaving to drive the No. 33 Chevrolet, which will be owned as of Oct. 1 by crew chief Andy Petree.
Schrader was telling reporters only that he had a contract with Hendrick Motorsports and was sticking to that contract.
Petree was telling reporters: ``I can't really say. We've talked to some drivers and I think we'll be ready to make an announcement in the next week or so.''
Coincidentally, Schrader's No. 25 team, and his sponsor, Budweiser, also should be ready to make an announcement in a week or so concerning future plans, team spokeswoman Joy Pinto said.
By the end of the day, the new spin on the Schrader rumor was that he was staying put because of sponsorship obligations.
While the Schrader rumor was percolating, a companion rumor surfaced that Ward Burton would take over Schrader's Chevy. But Burton told car owner Bill Davis and the crew of his No. 22 Pontiac on Saturday that he was sticking with them.
``The phone has been ringing the last couple of weeks and some teams had some pretty good offers, but the biggest reason for me not moving is that I like Bill and (wife) Gail as people and I still think we can get the job done here,'' Burton said.
But there are still many other pieces left to be placed in the 1997 puzzle.
``I've talked to a lot of people, and hopefully we'll have something to announce in the next couple of weeks,'' said Robert Pressley, who's out of the No. 33 car as of the end of the season.
John Andretti, who will be out of the Kranefuss car at the end of this year, said, ``I don't know what I'm going to do; I just read about what I'm going to do. Everybody seems to know but me.''
Steve Grissom is also a free agent for 1997, and no replacement has been named for the car he left - Gary Bechtel's No. 29 Chevrolet.
``The decision is in my hands,'' crew chief Bill Ingle said. ``We're undecided, but we've talked to about four people. I would have really liked to have had Ken Schrader, but that didn't work.''
Meanwhile, car owner Larry McClure confirmed that he will have a second team in 1997. No decision has been made as to a driver, but the top prospect in the rumor mill has been Rick Mast.
``That's a pretty hot rumor going around,'' Mast said. ``I don't know what I'm doing yet. There are two or three good opportunities there, and I'm waiting to see what happens.'' by CNB