Morgan-McClure returns to the track at Bristol

For Morgan-McClure Motorsports and driver #4-Scott Wimmer, qualifying on Friday for the Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway will mean more than just making the race. It could signal a return to racing fulltime in 2010. "We really want to make a good showing in qualifying and in Saturday's race," said Wimmer, who last drove for Richard Childress Racing in the Nationwide Series and had driven for Morgan-McClure in 2006. "That can attract some attention and hopefully get some sponsors involved. I tell you, this is a team that deserves to come back." The team that won three Daytona 500s in the 1990s, notched multiple wins at Talladega Superspeedway, and won at Martinsville in 1998 with the late Bobby Hamilton driving had major scale-backs in sponsorship that forced an abbreviated schedule in 2007 and sidelined the team for the entirety of 2008. Alpha Natural Resources, a leading U.S. coal producer with 74 facilities in five states including Virginia, is financially backing the team's second attempt at racing in 2009. Nationwide Series driver Eric McClure failed to qualify a Morgan-McClure car for the Aaron's 499 at Talladega in April. Kingsport Times News

Scott Wimmer appeared to be at home Monday morning as he roamed the sprawling headquarters of Morgan-McClure Motorsports. Wimmer joked with old friends, chatted with new associates and examined the fleet of No. 4 MMM Chevrolets. The old band might not be fully intact, but the essential pieces are in place for the reunion of a team that last competed in the 2007 fall Cup event at Martinsville Speedway. Wimmer, 33, will attempt to qualify for Saturday's Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway in a car sponsored by Alpha Natural Resources, an Abingdon-based coal producer. "People are always asking when this car is going to get back on the track," Wimmer said. "I'm really thankful to have the opportunity to make that happen." Wimmer drove 23 races for the MMM team during the 2006 season, recording a top finish of 19th in the Food City 500 at BMS. Morgan said he plans to rent the pit crew members of the No. 24 Rensi-Hamilton Hefty Ford driven by Abingdon's Eric McClure. Longtime Morgan-McClure Motorsports employees Steve Gray, Todd Cooper and Robert Larkins will also assist Wimmer. Food Country USA, an Abingdon-based grocery chain with a long history in stock car racing, is serving as an associate sponsor for the MMM team. Bristol Herald Courier