Mears out at HMS
Casey Mears and Hendrick Motorsports will part ways at season's end, opting to void the final year of their agreement and leaving one of NASCAR's top teams with an opening in a coveted seat.
"We've put a ton of emphasis on the No. 5 program," Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports, said in a statement. "It's been a total team effort, and Casey has worked as hard as anyone to help us improve. We've tested more than we ever have, but the results just haven't come.
"None of us, Casey included, have been satisfied with the situation this season. But he's confident there are other options out there for him in 2009, and we feel like Hendrick Motorsports will have some opportunities, too."
Mears is rumored to be a candidate for a fourth car at Richard Childress Racing, while the rest of the market seems to be waiting to see what Tony Stewart's future has in store before it starts to set itself in motion. In either case, Mears said he's been "pleasantly surprised" by the available opportunities. As far as Hendrick's future, one swirling possibility has Mark Martin returning to the seat full-time, while others have him coming to HMS to share the 5 car with a developing driver like Brad Keselowski.
***UPDATE*** Mears just met with the media, said he's known the move was being made for a couple of weeks and now that it's public knowledge he can begin to move on more relaxed. Despite being shifted to a new crew chief at the beginning of the year, being forced to adjust to the new car, and being given less than 16 races to figure everything out, Mears didn't make excuses for his struggles. He said the season has been "rough," and that he understood the move, but that he'll finish out the season in the No. 5 and is still excited to see that process through.
"I feel like every week we have an opportunity to capitalize on a good finish. For some reason we've just really, really struggled, the team as a whole, and us, we seemed to struggle a little bit more. It's unfortunate the way things have come out the way they have ... but we're trying to finish off the rest of this year as strong as we possibly can. There are really no hard feelings toward anybody right now."
