Skinner, Speed to share No. 84 for rest of season

Red Bull Racing Team announced that Mike Skinner and Red Bull development driver Scott Speed will replace A.J. Allmendinger in the No. 84 for the rest of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

Skinner

Speed

The No. 84 currently sits 33rd in owner points.

"The schedule we put together is in the best interest of both Red Bull Racing Team and A.J.'s plans for the future," said the team's vice president and general manager Jay Frye. "Allowing Mike Skinner and Scott Speed to share the No. 84 for the balance of the season helps our team continue developing our program for the future."

Skinner, who drove the No. 84 Toyota for five races earlier in the 2008 season, will take the reins of the No. 84 at the Cup races in both Talladega and Charlotte. His best finish for the team was 27th at Atlanta. Skinner currently sits fifth in the Truck Series standings with a victory and 15 top-10s in 19 starts.

Speed will drive the No. 82 Toyota at Charlotte on Oct. 11 -- the same weekend he attempts to clinch the ARCA RE/MAX Series championship in Toledo, Ohio. Speed will then take over driving duties of the No. 84 at Martinsville, Atlanta, Texas, Phoenix and Homestead.

"I'm really looking forward to my first Sprint Cup race with Red Bull," Speed said. "I can't describe how much it means to walk into Red Bull Racing and feel support from everyone on the team. It's a huge step up the ladder and another step toward the goal of becoming a Sprint Cup champion for Red Bull. I know this team has the performance level that it takes to be competitive."

Speed has 10 starts in the Truck Series this season, earning five top-fives and his first career victory, which came at Dover.