Furniture Row Racing has deepened its commitment to qualifying for every Nextel Cup race. The Denver-based rookie team, which has earned starts in 10 of 20 races, has hired elite-level road racer Max Papis to drive its No. 78 Chevrolet in the Aug. 13 road race at Watkins Glen, N.Y.
Papis has never started a Cup race, but that shouldn't prevent him from securing a spot in the 43-car field. The Italian-born driver has extensive NASCAR testing experience and is in his second year of competing in the International Race of Champions, the prestigious all-star circuit that uses identically prepared stock cars.
Papis, 36, finished second to defending Cup champion Tony Stewart in the third of four IROC races in June at Daytona's road course. After three of four races, Papis is tied for third with Ryan Newman in the IROC standings behind Stewart and fellow Cup driver Matt Kenseth.
Papis tested Monday with Furniture Row at Road Atlanta, where he previously dialed in Jimmie Johnson's car for Hendrick Motorsports.
"We're really excited about it," crew chief Joe Garone said Tuesday about his team's one-race deal with Papis, a former CART star who represents the Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series in IROC. "At Road Atlanta we were really fast. We're going to be fine.
"The cars are heavier than what he's used to and they move around a lot. But it's not going to be the first time he'll be in a Cup car. He tested the No. 48 earlier this year at Road Atlantic for the equivalent of three races. Knowing that, I'm really excited because he thoroughly understands what we're trying to do."
Qualifying for the race would be the latest thrill in a year's worth for Papis, who finished 14th at the Indianapolis 500 in May.
"I've run the Daytona 24 hours race, the Indy 500, Le Mans, watched Italy win the World Cup and, the most exciting thing, watched my son, Marco, being born," Papis said on NASCAR.com. "I am truly enjoying life right now and my NASCAR debut just adds to the excitement."
Garone said Kenny Wallace, who has made eight of the team's 10 starts, would qualify the No. 78 this weekend at the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. Wallace was 10th quickest in a full series test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway last month, although most teams were working on race setups, while Furniture Row ran solely in qualifying trim.
"Again, our goal this year is to qualify for races and then finish them," Garone said. "Still, we had a really good test there in a brand-new race car, and we've got a driver and a team that are pumped to get back there."
No looking back
Dale Earnhardt Jr., who has finished last in the past two races to fall from third to 11th in the standings, also finished last (43rd) at the Brickyard a year ago. But he said no one on his team is looking back.
"We've had two terrible results, but you can't dwell on it," Earnhardt said in a release. "What can you do? You have to put it behind you and look forward. We can't afford any more mistakes or finishes like that, but I have a team that's capable of coming back.
"We had the quickest car on our test day at Indy, so we feel pretty confident we're going in there with a setup that can run up front."
Footnotes
In 12 years of the Brickyard, the winner of the race has gone on to capture the series championship five times. Stewart did it last year, and Jeff Gordon won both crowns in 1998 and 2001. The others were Dale Jarrett in 1999 and Bobby Labonte in 2000. ... The 300,000-some fans that typically attend NASCAR's race at Indy will have to adjust their schedules for next year's race, because the 2007 event is pegged for July 29, a week earlier - the first time it's been staged before August. That race will be the Cup's first televised event on ESPN since 2000. The all-sports network is scheduled to carry the final 17 races next year. ... The purse for Sunday's race at Indy is a whopping $9,236,620.