http://www.nascar.com/2007/new ... ier.fourth.car/index.html Quote from article :Carpentier test could lead to Gillett Evernham ride New owner would like to add open-wheeler in fourth car[SIZE=1] By Dave Rodman, NASCAR.COM September 8, 2007 10:19 PM EDT RICHMOND, Va. -- A pair of Canadian road-racing icons, Jacques Villeneuve and Patrick Carpentier, may battle in the Sprint Cup Series next season if Gillett Evernham Motorsports owner George Gillett Jr.'s plans come to fruition. Villeneuve, who has open-wheel championships in Indy cars and Formula One, has begun a testing process that will continue through the final seven Craftsman Truck Series races; in hopes of competing in Sprint Cup in 2008 with Bill Davis Racing. Earlier this week, at a Montreal Canadiens golf tournament Gillett, who owned the hockey team among other businesses before recently becoming Ray Evernham's majority partner, told Canadian radio station CKAC 730 sports reporter Jeremy Filosa he'd love to see Carpentier, another noted Canadian open-wheel racer, in one of the team's cars. Gillett said negotiations with Carpentier, who's long wanted to make an entrée into NASCAR, hadn't abated. "I don't think they've cooled off at all -- in fact Patrick called me last night," Gillett told Filosa in a report that aired Tuesday. "He'll be testing our car in Kentucky and I think there's a very good chance he'll be driving one of our cars." Carpentier made two Busch Series road-course starts this summer, at Montreal and Watkins Glen, as well as the Watkins Glen Nextel Cup race in a Gillett Evernham Dodge Avenger. He may have more on his near horizon. "We're going to add a fourth car to the team this year," Gillett said. "And I think there's a very good chance he'll [Carpentier] drive one of our cars at some of the races -- if not all of the races, for the rest of the season. "We're very close to Patrick. He's a good friend of ours, personally. He's a great young man and a great driver -- a fine young man, outstanding -- and I think if he does as well on the oval as we think he will, there'll be a place for him." On Friday at Richmond International Raceway for the cutoff race for the Chase for the Nextel Cup, Evernham, who continues to direct the competition aspects of the stock-car team based in Statesville, N.C., tried to clarify things. "Here's what I know," Evernham said after watching the team's three cars qualify in the top 17 for the Chevy Rock & Roll 400. "We are going to test Patrick Carpentier, I think some time in mid-September we're supposed to go to Kentucky. And we are supposed to run a fourth car -- it's our test car, our R&D car like we used to do with the 91 car -- so we're supposed to do that. "But I don't know whether Patrick's going to drive it or not going to drive it. Right now, I know George would love to work something out with Patrick, but until I'm told differently, our driver lineup is staying the same until the end of the year [so] if Patrick does drive something it would be in addition to what we already have. "And again, that fourth car is only scheduled for two races. As far as I know there's not any sponsorship in place to do that fourth car. But George has a whole new slew of people handling that stuff -- I don't do that any more -- but as far as I know we don't have anything in place." Gillett Evernham is currently negotiating a contract renewal with its third driver, Scott Riggs. At Watkins Glen, Carpentier drove for Riggs and finished 22nd after starting 40th, when Bud Pole Qualifying was rained out. He led seven laps in the race. Carpentier, who has five Champ Car World Series victories and was third in the championship in 2002 and 2004, drove the two Busch road races for another Dodge team, Fitz Motorsports. He won the pole and finished second to Kevin Harvick in his home race and was 19th at Watkins Glen. "There's really nothing new with Scott -- performance certainly dictates everything that we do," Evernham said. "Scottie's a good guy and a good friend and I'd love to have him in our camp next year -- but we're under a performance gun. "I think we're still writing that ticket together because I've got to make sure I'm giving him the cars so that he can look good, and I don't think we've done that every week." Hmmm that's more foreign drivers in NASCAR Once again, NASCAR's becoming a world class series instead of a national series
