DOVER, Del. - HScott Motorsports announced Friday that Clint Bowyer will drive for the team next season before moving to Stewart-Haas Racing in 2017 to replace Tony Stewart there.
5-hour Energy will follow Bowyer and be his primary sponsor for 24 races next season. The team has not determined what the car number will be.
Bowyer has been looking for a ride since Michael Waltrip Racing announced it would close after this season.
Although HScott Motorsports previously stated that it would remain a two-car operation in 2016, owner Harry Scott would not say how many teams he would have Friday. The team previously confirmed that Michael Annett, in his first season with the organization, would return. Annett is 36th in the points standings this season. His best finish this year is 13th in the Daytona 500.
Justin Allgaier also is a part of HScott Motorsports’ two-car team this season.
HScott Motorsports, which is based in Spartanburg, S.C., gets chassis, engines and technical support from Hendrick Motorsports. Bowyer’s move allows him to begin using Hendrick equipment next year in preparation to his move to Stewart-Haas Racing, which also receives chassis and engines from Hendrick Motorsports.
“I think Clint will help us long-term because he’s basically going to be able to help us reset our program and set the bar higher,’' said Scott, who has owned the team since Sept. 2013 after purchasing it from James Finch. “He’ll help us form an even stronger relationship with Stewart-Haas and that, obviously, will be beneficial for us.’'
Said Bowyer: “I don’t want to leave Harry with nothing after this. When I leave there, I want to leave him having a winning organization.’'