Roush loses second team sponsor.

The 2001 season will see a new look Roush team take to the track in search of that elusive Winston Cup success with up to three of its five Ford Taurus' running with an all-new livery.

Earlier in the Summer, long time backer Valvoline announced its intentions to leave the team after the 2000 season, ending one of the most recognisable combinations in the Winston Cup pit lane (Valvoline/Roush/Martin) and the veteran team-boss was left looking for another company who would add as much support to the team as Valvoline had done over the years.

As he continued his search he also announced that Chad Little, driver of the #97 John Deere Ford, would not be retained for the following year leaving another sponsorship deal in jeopardy. Thankfully John Deere have confirmed that they intend to stay with the team next year although the details of the arrangement have yet to be finalised.

As the Summer stretch draws to a close it has become clear that Martin is too far back in the points standings to win a farewell WC title for Valvoline while Jeff Burton in the #99 Exide Batteries Ford has emerged as Roush's last hope of gaining an invitation to the top table at the NASCAR awards in November.

Burton's form in recent races has bee simply electrifying with five consecutive top ten finishes and six top tens in his last seven starts, capped off with a win at the Pepsi 400 at Daytona in July. The South Boston GA native has moved into the top four in the Winston Cup points table and his hot on the tail of current points leader Bobby Labonte. Burton, Exide and Roush have been together since 1996 and each year the combination have finished inside the top ten in points each year.

Therefore Roush and his team were understandably taken aback by Exide's sudden decision to leave the outfit at the end of the current campaign. "You obviously hate when something like this happens," said Burton who further eroded Labonte's points lead with a herd fought sixth place at Bristol last Saturday. Team President Geoff Smith added, " We are very sorry that they (Exide) had to make this move, but we are very pleased they will retain an associate sponsorship position."

With the NASCAR season reaching its climax in Mid November, time is not on the side of Roush as he attempts to land yet another eager main sponsor for one of his most competitive machines on the circuit Although he will have no shortage of offers and most companies would love to be a part of a team of Burton's calibre, finding the right deal is another matter altogether. One possible replacement is CITGO who are a loyal Winston Cup sponsor although current driver Elliott Sadler and the Wood Brothers team are doing their utmost to retain the company next year.

Whoever Roush plumbs for in the end, Burton will be just a part of an increasingly changing 2001 Winston Cup grid which will look almost alien to the one currently on the track and as STP and the Petty Enterprises team showed earlier in the year, nothing in the Winston Cup lasts forever.