"If I fail or if I get booted out, if I don't make the show or [if I don't] get an opportunity anywhere, so be it." Credit: Autostock

Riggs searching; plans for '06 still up in the air

BROOKLYN, Mich. -- As the 2005 season enters its homestretch, Scott Riggs still finds himself available despite a rash of signings in recent weeks.

Riggs signed a two-year contract to drive for MB2 before the 2004 season, and the team initially wanted him to sign an extension earlier this summer.

That contract remains unsigned, and Riggs is clearly playing the employment game with heavy artillery.

"Everything is coming together slowly by surely, and everybody will know in a couple of weeks," Riggs said. "I don't have a timetable.

	SCOTT RIGGS •   Driver Page •   2005 Stats •   Superstore: Riggs gear! •   Follow Team CENTRIX

"Bills, I am not worried about, not thinking about it much, lot of rumors going on and a lot of people talking, rumors flying about where I am going but I am not worried about it, just trying to perform."

Any driver can tell you that it's a dangerous game that can sometimes lead to unemployment. Silly Season is often a game of musical chairs, but Riggs says he isn't worried if he's left standing when the chairs are filled for 2006.

"If I fail or if I get booted out, if I don't make the show or [if I don't] get an opportunity anywhere, so be it," said Riggs. "As long as I give 110 percent, if I fail, I have no regrets."

Riggs' sponsor, Valvoline, defected to Evernham Motorsports for the 2006 season, and Riggs is naturally a candidate for that job. Riggs says his current team, MB2, will make it back to the track despite the loss of Valvoline.

"I know they will run whether it's [sponsors] Centrix or Rally's coming on board," Riggs said. "I know they will run, I just am not sure which is going to fit me, and what Rally's and Centrix wants as a driver."

MB2 Motorsports is in the midst of a major expansion effort that includes a new shop, and they shored up the team up in July by signing Joe Nemechek to a long-term extension.

But those efforts may not be enough to keep Riggs, who finds himself in Silly Season gossip despite a deep summer slump.

Riggs, 34, hasn't had a finish better than 21st since Dover. He scored three top-10s in the first five races and got as high as 14th in the points, but he's 31st now, two spots worse than his rookie finish last year.

The slump has intensely frustrated Riggs, who got his old friend Rodney Childers as his crew chief in mid-season. Riggs thought the move would help him finish in the top 15 in points, but he's nose-dived in the points after a steady diet of flat tracks and road courses.

Riggs' best shot at running well lies at high-speed, higher-banked tracks like Michigan.

"We have had some really good cars but haven't been able to prove it," Riggs said. "It was really good for us to get away from those road courses. Glad we're back at a place where we have a true shot at running well and having a good finish."

He's hinted that a change of scenery might help.

"I hope we can go somewhere and be strong and be able to be competitive and prove what I can do," said Riggs. "I want a shot with good people and good equipment around me and get a shot at what I can do."