Wimmer confident despite team changes

Third-year driver seeks to maintain momentum

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Scott Wimmer, unquestionably the sharpest-dressed man at Friday's NASCAR Busch Series preview in downtown Charlotte, strolls into the interview area wearing gray slacks, black square-toed shoes and a white button down shirt.

The pants and shoes scream class. But for Wimmer, the shirt is undoubtedly the difference-maker.

	Bill Davis Credit: Autostock

It actually has a sponsor logo on it.

"Oh yeah, it's real nice to have a sponsor," said Wimmer, who won four races and finished third in the 2002 standings despite having limited financial backing from anyone but owner Bill Davis.

Davis solved that problem by adding Stacker2 as the sponsor for his Busch program. Stacker2 also backs one of Davis' two Winston Cup cars.

"We haven't had (a sponsor) for a whole year yet, really," Wimmer said. "To go into the year with one it's exciting for me. And I'm sure it's exciting for Bill, not to have to fund the whole thing out of his pocket. It always helps to have sponsorship."

Not that Wimmer and his boys need much help. After breaking through for his first career victory at Dover International Speedway in September, Wimmer went on to win three more times, including back-to-back victories at Phoenix and Homestead to close the year.

"I think there was a lot of things building up to Dover and once we got that first win under our belt it seemed like everything just started rolling real well. Everything just seemed to start going right," Wimmer said. "The team was real excited and I was hungrier than ever to get another win.

"We were all clicking and managed to pull out three more (wins) after that one. It was pretty amazing, but I knew once that first one came we'd probably start rolling and get some more."

New crew chief, new manufacturer for 2003

	Wimmer has finished 11th and third in the standings in his two Busch Series seasons. Credit: Autostock

Continuing the momentum they carried into the offseason is a daunting task. They're changing makes, from Pontiac to Chevrolet. Crew chief Robert Barker moved to Jasper Motorsports and the Winston Cup Series, handing the reigns to rookie crew chief Chris Rice.

"We've had some changes in our team, but Bill Davis has given me some great people to work with and I think we can get through that," Wimmer said. "Chris is real smart. He knows Bootie real well and listens to me and we've got real good communication already.

"Testing is going to be real important for us just to be sure we get that communication down. That's a big thing - building momentum for next year.

"We were fortunate, we had a lot of momentum at the end of the year and hopefully that'll help us right at the beginning of Speedweeks and we'll go down there and test real well and keep that momentum."

If Wimmer & Co. can manage to maintain their current good fortune, they'll almost certainly vie for the 2003 title. Aside from a handful of setback, Wimmer learned the art of racing patiently during his sophomore campaign.

"That's our main goal," he said. "I'm sure, though, that some people will think otherwise. We changed makes, we changed crew chiefs and things like that. But Bill Davis has a goal, and he's put a lot of money into our program to help us build new racecars. So that's really what we're gunning for. We're going to be a real strong Busch team."

And a well-dressed one, too.