(By Reid Spencer NASCAR Wire Service)
Posted: Sunday,July 31st, 2011
INDIANAPOLIS — The way Greg Biffle sees it, Carl Edwards’ protracted contract negotiations are starting to have a negative impact on the entire Roush Fenway Racing organization.
In a candid question-and-answer session Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Biffle urged his teammate to say whether he’s staying at RFR or moving to another team next year. Persistent rumors have Edwards driving for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2012 and beyond.
“It’s obvious that it’s coming to a head, kind of like whether we’re going to approve the debt ceiling or not,” Biffle said. “At some point, he’s going to have to say ‘I’m not coming back.’ He’s not going to be able to wait until Homestead — we all know that — so Carl is a big boy, he’s a man, and he has to make his own decisions.
Greg Biffle (Getty Images)
“Eventually, he’s going to have to make a decision, and it’ll be best for everybody so we can plan for sponsorships and drivers and teams and people. There are a lot of people’s jobs on the line — if we’re going to be three teams or four teams — so the sooner the better. I understand contract negotiations take a long time and there is a lot to them, but, truly, if you know or you’ve made a decision, then it’s time to give everybody enough opportunity to make their decision on the back side of that.”
Edwards said Friday that he has not signed a contract for 2012 but did not preclude having made a decision as to where he’ll drive. “I’d rather not say,” the driver of the No. 99 Ford said.
That sort of response is likely to annoy Biffle and his compatriots at RFR. Historically, July 1 has been an unofficial deadline for announcing driver changes, given that sponsorships have to be solidified, paint schemes settled upon and die cast production ordered. At this point, the Edwards announcement is dragging into August.
“It’s tough, but one thing I always did is when I knew what I was doing, then I said, ‘This is what I’m going to do,’ ” Biffle said. “You can’t have a deal done or plan to have a deal done and not let everybody know — so that it’s fair for everyone to go make a plan on what’s next.”
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