LAKEWOOD, CA, JANUARY 16, 2002 - Troy Rutherford recently
confirmed that he will not be starting the 2002 Sprint Car Racing Association
(SCRA) season with the Gardner Motorsports Team.
Rutherford, who finished third in SCRA series points last season, joined the
Jack Gardner, Jr. owned team on a full-time basis on May 22, 1999, at Ventura
Raceway. Enjoying immediate success, Rutherford finished second on that
night and one week later won his first career SCRA main event at the Perris Auto
Speedway.
Gardner and Rutherford won two races together last year including the Midwest
SCRA/NWWC finale at Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas. During the
course of the season they posted 17 top-five finishes and were tied for the most
Sander Engineering Fast Times with eight.
Even though Rutherford and Gardner have parted on good terms, Rutherford is now
left with the unenviable task of finding a permanent ride less than a month
before the SCRA opener at Perris (Feb. 9th).
"I went to Tulsa (OK) to race in the Chili Bowl and I've just been
hammering the phones," Rutherford said of his quest to find a ride for the
upcoming season.
