Sauter Out Blaney In

In the first significant move of the 2004 silly season Richard Childress Racing announced that Dave Blaney is replacing rookie Johnny Sauter in the AOL #30 car starting this weekend in Michigan. Road racing specialist Jim Inglebright will drive the June 27th road race in Sears Point with Blaney returning to the driving duties for the rest of the year after that.

Johnny Sauter may be a decent Cup driver someday but he clearly needs a couple more years of seasoning in the Busch Series. There is some raw talent there, but he's not ready yet. I mentioned in my 2004 Rookie Preview that Sauter was a gamble for Childress, he may still payoff but not in 2004.

Good luck to genuine-nice-guy Dave Blaney. I hope he can find his way to victory lane with Childress.