Quote:
Originally Posted by Victor_RO
Waltrip was a "factory" driver and multiple race winner in NASCAR and he's under 55 years of age, so they classified him as such.
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I'm not sure how you would classify Michael Waltrip as a factory driver. NASCAR (and Indycar) drivers generally are signed with their teams, not with manufacturers. Teams have affiliations with manufacturers, but then almost every NASCAR/IRL driver would be classified as being a factory driver if you use that as factory driver criteria. Waltrip may own a team that receives manufacturer money and drive for himself, but it's not like he's receiving that manufacturer money for his driving. Someone like Tony Stewart would be a different story. Of course, I would put Michael Waltrip more in the class of owner-drivers like Brett Bodine and Dave Marcis than Tony Stewart. Of course, all of those drivers have won Winston Cup races.