Tommy Baldwin announced Thursday on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that veteran Regan Smith will take over driving duties for his No. 7 Sprint Cup team for the 2016 season
Earlier, Tommy Baldwin Racing announced Thursday morning that Alex Bowman, who drove the car in 2015 and finished 33rd in driver points, was released from the team.. The revealing of Smith as the new driver came later Thursday evening. Toy State and its Nikko and Road Rippers remote control vehicle brands will be the team’s main sponsor in 2016.
Smith, 32, is a veteran racer with 176 Cup races under his belt, including a win with Furniture Row Racing in the 2011 Southern 500 at Darlington. He raced for JR Motorsports in the NASCAR XFINITY Series in 2015, scoring two wins and 26 top-10 finishes.
Smith told SiriusXM’s Dave Moody that he’s “never had something happen this quick” when negotiating for a ride and said that talks with TBR began Tuesday of this week.
“This has been a crazy few days, but I’m really excited that we were able to put this together,” he said. “I have a ton of respect for Tommy and what he’s built there. It’s going to be a lot of fun,” Smith said in a TBR team release.
“This is a really great time for us,” added team owner Tommy Baldwin. “Having a driver with Regan’s credentials further elevates our program. He’s a seasoned driver and a proven race winner. We’re really looking forward to 2016.”
Amy is an 20-year veteran NASCAR writer and a six-time National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) writing award winner, including first place awards for both columns and race coverage. As well as serving as Photo Editor, Amy writes The Big 6 (Mondays) after every NASCAR Cup Series race. She can also be found working on her bi-weekly columns Holding A Pretty Wheel (Tuesdays) and Only Yesterday (Wednesdays). A New Hampshire native whose heart is in North Carolina, Amy’s work credits have extended everywhere from driver Kenny Wallace’s website to Athlon Sports. She can also be heard weekly as a panelist on the Hard Left Turn podcast that can be found on AccessWDUN.com's Around the Track page.
It seems like there is more to the story somewhere. Why did TBR suddenly feel the need to change directions, after already picking up the contract option on Alex Bowman for 2016?
“It’s going to be a lot of fun” said RS. I like and respect TBR, but I can’t believe it is fun working there. Especially when they have bad weekend.
These stories in Frontstretch are soft. We want to know the real story.