RELATED: Bowyer free to pursue 2016 opportunities
MORE: MWR won’t field full-time team in 2016
BRISTOL, Tenn. – Clint Bowyer said his racing future “is uncertain right now” as he prepares to finish out the season with Michael Waltrip Racing before an expected move to a new employer in 2016.
Earlier this week, MWR officials announced Bowyer, 36, and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series organization had “mutually agreed” to end their relationship at the conclusion of the ’15 season.
The two-team outfit, which fields the No. 55 Toyota for driver David Ragan in addition to the No. 15 of Bowyer, will not field a full-time Sprint Cup effort next year.
“It’s a tough time for everybody involved,” Bowyer said Friday morning at Bristol Motor Speedway, site of Saturday night’s Irwin Tools Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). “It’s unfortunate.
“The truth is we’re eight months into a three-year commitment to one another. I had a great four years at this company; great culture, great personnel at MWR. I really did enjoy the years that I spent there.
“That being said Rob (Kauffman, MWR co-owner) … invested a lot into this sport. It’s a business decision to move forward on his end. That’s where our futures … unfortunately just don’t align anymore.”
WATCH: Bowyer, Kauffman expound on MWR split
The timing of the announcement was crucial, Bowyer said, to allow employees at MWR to understand and digest the situation and focus on the remainder of the ’15 season.
“These employees … are real people, with real lives with real families and a lot at stake,” he said. “They are racers, just like I am. But the racer in you doesn’t change the reality side of life. And the reality is you need to provide for your family.
“I thought it was extremely important … to get in front of that and I owed it to these employees to get this done as soon as possible, even knowing where we’re at on the bubble and everything in the Chase. I think being honest and straightforward and doing that for these people in the long run will set them up to make the most out of a difficult situation.”
Bowyer is an eight-time winner in the Sprint Cup Series, with three of those wins coming with MWR, which he joined in 2012. He finished a career-best second in the Chase for the Sprint Cup battle in his first year with the organization.
WATCH: Rob Kauffman about MWR, Bowyer decisions
Heading into Saturday night’s race at BMS, Bowyer is 15th in points with one top-five and nine top-10 finishes.
Eleven of the 16 available Chase slots have been secured (as long as those drivers remain in the top 30 in points), leaving Bowyer and a handful of others battling for one of the five remaining positions.
As for what the 2016 season and beyond may hold, Bowyer appears to be keeping all options open at this point.
“Absolutely,” he said. “… What I’m going to have in the future … will be another announcement and I’ll tell you as soon as possible. It’s as simple as that.
“I’m confident in the sport, I love this sport and the sport has been good to me and my family — (I’ve) had a lot of great partners and a lot of great organizations that I’ve worked for, and I see no reason why somebody that works hard and wants it like I do … can’t have a job for as long as they want.”
PHOTOS: MWR through the years