Full Throttle

A financial bean-ball has hit NCTS driver Bill Lester right between the eyes. And wallet.

Billy Ballew Motorsports has announced that Nate Monteith will take the wheel of the #15 Billy Ballew Motorsports Chevrolet Silverado at Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend.

A shortage of cash is the reason. Monteith brings a full wallet with him (sponsor to be named later). Lester, NASCAR’s only African-American driver, has apparently run the financial well dry at Power Stroke Diesel his sponsor since Daytona.

“We are excited to have Nate Monteith onboard in the No. 15 for Bristol. He is a strong driver with a lot of undiscovered talent,” team owner Billy Ballew said.

Maybe there is a reason his talent in “undiscovered?” I won’t dispute the truth in that statement I’m not close enough to the situation to know, but it is a odd coincidence his talent is suddenly discovered as Lester has run out of cash.

To be fair his website shows considerable experience in Karts at a young age, late models at various short tracks and a “cup-of-coffee” in both the Bucsh Series and ARCA RE/MAX Series. Maybe he deserves a shot, time will tell.

But honestly, the deciding factor here is Monteith’s ability to bring a larger wallet with him, and that’s a shame. I’m reminded of Janet Guthrie’s advice on succeeding in racing, “Be born rich.”

Or have sponsors that were.