Bayne disappointed he didn’t get Cup ride

Trevor Bayne admitted Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway he has mixed emotions about Ricky Stenhouse Jr. being Matt Kenseth's replacement at Roush Fenway Racing because he believes they both deserve a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series ride. "At first when they said that I was a little bit bummed out because I wanted them to come to me and say, 'Hey, we're gonna run you full-time in a Cup car with the fourth team' and that didn't happen," Bayne said.

"But when I did find out I was running Nationwide and I thought about it, I thought that's probably a good decision to go out there and get that first full season under our belt in the series. I haven't gotten to go points racing and I think it would be good to get that under our belt before we go to that Cup level when it's gonna be even tougher to do that and get that experience." Bayne believes Stenhouse's move into the #17 Ford is a "great opportunity" for his teammate. "At the same time, I can't wait to get my opportunity in Cup," Bayne continued. "I think we could run competitively there every weekend. We do that even with the Wood Brothers part-time. But I've just got to be patient in the meantime for that."

Team co-owner Jack Roush has already said he planned to field a full-time Nationwide team for Bayne in 2013. Bayne also plans to continue driving a limited Sprint Cup schedule for the Wood Brothers [#21 Ford]. Bayne said the only way he would consider a move to Penske Racing would be if Roush told him it was an option. "Being under contract, there is no way I would go talk to another team or do anything like that at this point," the 21-year-old Bayne said. "The more (Ford) teams the better, but I don't know if that changes opportunities for me or not." RacinToday