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Cocky? Reutimann Merely Excited About Start

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By TONY FABRIZIO | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 27, 2009

David Reutimann's hot start in the 2009 NASCAR season has gone to his head. The Zephyrhills' native has starting calling himself "The Franchise" around Michael Waltrip Racing.

Anyone familiar with Reutimann and his self-deprecating sense of humor knows he's being satirical. The nickname was getting some chuckles Friday at Martinsville Speedway, where rained washed out qualifying for Sunday's Goody's 500.

"That's a joke I started with [general manager] Ty Norris," Reutimann said. "I heard some football player say he was 'The Franchise,' and I was like, 'wow, that's a pretty bold statement.'

"So we ran good one day, and Ty and I were talking after the race, and I was like, 'Ty, you know I'm 'The Franchise,' don't you?' It was a complete joke."

Driving for an MWR team that's suddenly commanding respect, Reutimann is the most-improved driver on the circuit five races into the season. He's 11th in the points, with an average finish of (14.8) that's 10 spots better than his career average.

Reutimann got his first career top-five finish earlier this month with a fourth at Las Vegas, and he finished 12th last week at crash-prone Bristol.

Vegas is where he became "The Franchise."

"We have a lot of fun on the race team and with the people around me – especially the people upstairs [executives]," Reutimann said. "I like to go up there and sit down and throw my feet up on their desk and act like I'm somebody when I'm not. Fortunately, the people around me tolerate it pretty well."

They might not tolerate what he plans to do next so well.

"A lot of those football guys, they talk [about] themselves in the third person," Reutimann said. "So one day I'm going to do an interview in the third person, but I have to win a race first."

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