Michael Waltrip Racing: Creating a Contender

The Nascar world runs around Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing, mix in a little Roush Fenway and Richard Childress Racing, and then you are left with Penske, Stewart-Haas, and Michael Waltrip Racing picking up the scraps. That isn't even mentioning Richard Petty Motorsports, Furniture Row, or any other small team trying to just get a mention.

I bring this up because one team really seems to be making strides and could possibly start to push towards the top in the next few years. That team is the before mentioned Michael Waltrip Racing. MWR has come a long way from their start and it has shown the past few seasons.

Last season MWR finally got a driver into the Sprint Cup Chase for the first time and it happened to be a case of the doubles. That's because after Clint Bowyer clinched MWR's first berth Martin Truex Jr ended up also getting in. It seems like last year was a huge coming out party at MWR. This coming out party was largely due to the season its drivers had.

Last season was Clint Bowyers first season with Michael Waltrip and he had the best season of his career thus far. In 2012 Bowyer finished the season runner up to first time Champion Brad Keselowski. Roger Penske has been a long time owner who has paid his dues and 2012 was his first ever Sprint Cup Championship, proving how hard it is to establish a team in Nascar. In 2012 Bowyer also posted 3 Wins, 10 Top 5's, and 23 Top 10's which were all career best for him. This season Bowyer has gotten off to a hot start and sits 3rd in the standings yet he has not found a win in 16 races.

In 2007 Martin Truex Jr won the first race of his career and this past weekend at Sonoma he finally notched his second. Also in 2007, MWR started to really get the ball rolling. MWR was one of the first 3 car teams to adapt to the new Toyota cars and have stuck with them since. Not only is Truex the latest winner this season but he also is sitting in an alright position to make his second straight Chase appearance. Matter of fact, Truex may not have the points that Bowyer has but he has an important win so far in 2013. Truex is sitting 10th in points through 16 races and is also coming off his best season in his career much like Bowyer.  He may not have posted a win last year but he tied his career high of Top 5's (7) and notched a career best 19 Top 10's on his way to a 12.1 average finish position. He didn't fair too well in the Chase where he finished 11th overall but it was his first taste of the big show.

Truex has long been regarded as a driver with tons of potential but just hadn't quiet tapped into it yet, but last season he showed a glimpse of it. After the win at Sonoma some people now think he could make a run while he is in the peak of his career. 

MWR has Truex and Bowyer who both could be hitting hot stretches in there careers behind the wheels of there Toyota Camry's so Michael has got to be happy. The question is, can MWR take the next step and become a title contender in the near future or even as early as this season?

Last year Roger Penske finally got his long awaited title, and in 2011 driver/partial owner Tony Stewart broke an 11 year streak of Hendrick, Gibbs, or Childress Champions with a Stewart-Haas Championship. From 1993-2010 only Robert Yates fielded a driver (Dale Jarrett) to beat one of the big three. (A look at the History of Sprint Cup Champions and Team Owners)

No one who knows Nascar will argue money wins races in Nascar (Which has lead to many years of research, development, and learning curves), and with that statement that Hendrick and Gibbs are tier one on that list (Childress riding shotgun) but with recent success of two non big three teams could MWR's time be now to break through? When thinking about that, also take this into account, those big three have owner's who are not getting any younger. To take a longer look into that check out this Fox Sports article that takes a look at the new demographic of Nascar and its owners. In my opinion I think that Michael Waltrip Racing is starting to turn a corner and will start to be a force for the next decade. Who else will step up as owners start to age and the cost of getting into Nascar keeps getting steeper and steeper?

• Martin Truex Jr- Sign's with MWR in 2010
• 124 Races. 1 Win. 15 top 5's. 45 top 10's. (With MWR)
• Clint Bowyer- Sign's with MWR in 2012
• 52 Races 3 Win's. 15 top 5's. 32 top 10's. (With MWR)

**I do realize MWR also fields the #55 (Mark Martin) every week but he is just coasting through his time at MWR anyways**

Take a look at this weeks Driver Spotlight that happens to be on Martin Truex Jr
Also take a peak at last weeks Power Rankings and this Weeks Kentucky Preview!