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We got another stark reminder last week about how a weak economy and soft sponsorship market are affecting NASCAR teams. UPS announced they would be moving from full primary sponsorship at Roush Fenway to one race as a primary sponsor with a full season as an associate sponsorship. Ouch.
The move likely means just three teams for RFR in 2011 – and David Ragan out of his ride. Add to their woes the closure of Kevin Harvick Inc., possible downsizing at Turner and Germain, less than full sponsorship for Matt Kenseth and Clint Bowyer and you have a tough market for teams and drivers.
That is, if you’re a driver without money behind you. If you have sponsorship, or dollars to throw around, the world is truly your oyster.
Nelson Piquet, who’s losing his ride at KHI at the end of the year has been on the hunt and talking to multiple potential suitors. He told WSB Radio:
“It’s down to Turner [Motorsports], Penske [Racing], Kyle Busch [Motorsports], and Eddie Sharp [Racing]… Maybe a little bit less Eddie, because he doesn’t have [a] Nationwide [team] and we are planning on doing part of the Nationwide Series next year.”
Not a bad group of teams to be deciding from – especially since they’re courting him, not the other way around. Piquet, a former Renault F1 driver – involved in a 2009 scandal – came to NASCAR in 2010. The driver has quickly acclimated, scoring three top-tens in five starts during the 2010 Truck Season and four top-fives and eight top-tens so far this season.
Piquet is a good prospect. Even better, he brings money with him. Truly a win-win for any team.
Consider too Brendan Gaughan, the son and grandson of legendary Las Vegas casino owners. The Gaughan’s have a lot of money and just like Piquet, Brendan’s pretty good.
According to internet reports Gaughan has been in negotiations for a ride with Richard Childress Racing. The team is competing for a championship in the truck series and will have a renewed Nationwide Series program next season. RCR has, of course, made recent forays into the pay-to-play side of NASCAR with Paul Menard, Tim George Jr., John Wes Townley and Joey Coulter, so this isn’t completely surprising. This potential deal gives Gaughan his best opportunity for success since he left Penske years ago.
It’s truly a buyers market right now. If you can bring money to the table and you have signs of talent (and in the case of some drivers a personality that can be managed) where you end up is up to you.
On Tuesday, shortly after a Turner Motorsports press release confirmed our breaking news from Monday (Dollar General gone), we found out that Reed Sorenson had been bounced from Turner’s #32 Chevy. The exact reason for why he was given the boot isn’t clear, but performance can be ruled out. Sorenson has a win this season, sits third in the driver points, and is consistently the best performing Turner driver. So now, left with no ride for the remainder of the season, and no big money behind him, Sorenson’s future looks bleak.
It’s certainly been a few years ago, but if you might remember, there was a time when Sorenson was the hottest young driver in NASCAR. After winning two races and finishing fourth in the points in his first full season in the Busch Series, Sorenson was given a full time Cup ride in 2006 with Chip Ganassi Racing.
Unfortunately for him though, that 2005 Busch season was the best of his career. After four and a half seasons in the Cup Series, and some moderate Nationwide Series success since, Sorenson now finds himself without a ride.
Considering his past, and the fact that he doesn’t have a sponsor in his pocket, I’m wondering who, if anyone, will give Sorenson another shot. He clearly won’t get another decent ride in the Cup Series, though he has shown he can be competitive in good equipment in the Nationwide Series. But what NNS team that fits that description is going to put him in a race car?
Following the Dollar General press release, Turner announced that Brian Vickers will drive the #32 at Kansas and Charlotte. Who will drive the car beyond that isn’t yet known, but Steve Turner said they will continue to “evaluate their racing program.” For Sorenson though, barring some sort of last minute miracle, don’t expect to see him get in another car to protect his third place position in the points. His 2011 season is now shot, and the future doesn’t look much better.
We are hearing that Turner Motorsports had meetings with the majority of their employees today and handed out letters in accordance with the North Carolina WARN Act regarding layoffs. In case you aren’t familiar, the WARN Act “requires a 60-day notice to the state and employees if at least 50 employees will be laid off because of the closure or shutdown of a business unit or if a company has layoffs of at least 50 people that impact 33 percent of a workforce at a single site.” The reason for possible upcoming layoffs at Turner is the loss of sponsor Dollar General. Dollar General is currently the sponsor on Reed Sorenson’s #32 car, and has been a team sponsor going back to when Turner was Braun Racing. Don’t expect Dollar General to disappear though, as they are rumored to be working with another team for the future.
As for Turner, not every employee is in danger as they are expected to have at least two full time trucks, two full time Nationwide cars, and possibly a third part time NNS team in 2012.
We will keep you posted as we hear more.
The end of the 2011 season is drawing near, and it seems we hear every week about another team that is preparing to lay off employees. The U.S. economy has still not rebounded, and even though some signs are better for NASCAR (like TV ratings), it would appear that we haven’t yet found the bottom. It all adds up to what will be another tough winter for many employed in and around the sport.
Thanks to North Carolina’s WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) Act, we’ve had several public notifications within the last few weeks about impending race team layoffs. The state requires a 60 day notice if more than 50 workers will be laid off because of a company shutdown. Red Bull Racing, Kevin Harvick Inc., and Germain Racing have all filed with the state.
Red Bull and KHI are organizations that will be shut down completely at season’s end. We’ve obviously known about Red Bull for several months, and we learned within the last month about KHI. The Nationwide Series teams that were housed at KHI will be absorbed by Richard Childress Racing, so there is some hope for a few. But that still leaves several hundred people looking for work.
Germain, while still a bad situation, isn’t quite as dire as Red Bull and KHI. Germain knows for certain they have funding for 22 races for their Cup Series program for next season, but their Truck teams are in limbo. Brendan Gaughan may not return, GEICO won’t sponsor Max Papis, and they’ve been piecing together sponsorship for Todd Bodine for the last several seasons. With so much still to figure out, they didn’t have any other choice but to file their notice.
Besides these teams, we know there is a good chance RCR will cut back down to three Cup teams with the departure of Clint Bowyer. Roush Fenway Racing could be facing cuts, as sponsorship remains a big question for their #6 and #17 Cup teams. There is also word that their Nationwide Series program could be significantly smaller next season. And while we are talking about NNS teams, Turner Motorsports might be cutting back both their NNS and Truck programs because of lack of sponsorship. There are also questions at Rusty Wallace Racing, as it appears they need a replacement for 5 Hour Energy.
It isn’t all bad though. If Bowyer does end up at Michael Waltrip Racing like it has been rumored, that team would go from two cars to three. Also, Stewart Haas is adding at least a partial third Cup car with the addition of Danica Patrick. We also know that Eddie Sharp Racing will expand significantly next season, as the team has purchased the #8 and #33 trucks from KHI to add to their already existing #6 truck. Possible drivers for those seats include Cale Gale and Tim George, Jr. And besides adding KHI’s #8 and #33 NNS teams, RCR will start a third NNS team for Austin Dillon.
With eight weeks remaining, there are still a lot of unfinished plans. Drivers like Brian Vickers and Mark Martin still haven’t locked down seats for 2012, and there are plenty of other free agent drivers in the lower series. We also continue to hear that Red Bull’s involvement in NASCAR may not completely end. The chance still exists for that team to continue in some form or another. Either way, here’s to hoping everyone lands on their feet following Homestead.
With the Cup Series delayed until at least Tuesday, I figured we’d take a look at an incident that took place during Saturday night’s Nationwide Series race at Atlanta. Late in the going, Justin Allgaier got into Turner Motorsports teammate Reed Sorenson in turn two, causing a wreck that ended the night for Sorenson and Trevor Bayne. Allgaier’s move underneath Sorenson appeared to be a bit overzealous, as there wasn’t really an opening, and he effectively took his teammate four wide in the corner. It was a choice that shouldn’t have been made, and we heard owner Steve Turner was none too pleased with Allgaier following the race.
What made the incident look doubly bad for Allgaier, was the fact that coming into Atlanta, Sorenson only trailed points leader Ricky Stenhouse Jr. by ten points. But following the race, Sorenson now sits 40 markers behind Stenhouse. Both Turner drivers were running in the top ten at the time of the incident, and appeared to be on their way to good finishes. Now, Sorenson’s #32 team faces the daunting task of trying to make up 40 points with only eight races remaining.
As an owner, it’s got to be difficult to stomach seeing one of your cars wreck another of your cars. Not only does it kill any chance for a good finish, but its also going to cost thousands of dollars to repair the wrecked car. You can be sure that if I was that owner, a serious butt chewing would be coming to my driver.
In this case, it’s interesting that it was Allgaier who made the bad move. You don’t usually see him put himself and other drivers in bad spots. He’s a talented driver and a good kid, and you could see in his post race interview that he was upset with what happened. But everyone makes mistakes and hopefully Allgaier learns from this one.
As I close, I just want to wish everyone a safe and happy Labor Day from both myself and Journo.
If you thought before the season that Turner Motorsports was just a flash in the pan, or that they wouldn’t be contenders, the first three Nationwide Series races have been a rude awakening. Following Las Vegas, Turner’s full time drivers sit first, third, and fifth in the standings, and don’t appear to be going away any time soon. And the team’s fourth car, with Mark Martin behind the wheel, showed Turner can not only contend, but win.
When I wrote back in December about how I thought Turner could be on their way to being the next NASCAR powerhouse team, I knew it was certainly a possibility, I just didn’t realize it would manifest itself this quickly. They do have a solid nucleus of young and talented drivers, and a strong base of sponsors. Add to that the fact that they were able to bring Martin into the mix, and you’ve got a good recipe for success.
The team, which also includes two trucks, suffered a tough blow at Phoenix a week ago when James Buescher failed to qualify. Martin’s win however, will provide a serious boost to a team trying to establish themselves. It also shows that Buescher’s DNQ was probably closer to a freak incident, rather than what will be the norm.
While Turner does get equipment from some of the best in the business, the team definitely needs to be commended for the results they’ve been able to put up without the backing of a major Cup Series operation. They compete week in and week out with teams like those from Joe Gibbs Racing and Roush Fenway, and they’re showing they’ve got what it takes to win.
Moving forward, it will be important to the health and future of the organization that their full time drivers find a way to win. It’s great that an ace-in-the-hole driver like Martin can come in and win, because it shows the equipment is there, but the other drivers are the key to Turner’s long term viability.
If Saturday was any indication though, those W’s could be coming very soon.
At the beginning of the last two years since we opened TNI, we’ve done a rumor scorecard for the previous season. (See the ’08 and ’09 scorecards here and here.) With 2010 now officially behind us, I figured it was time to grade ourselves and our reporting for the year. Before I do though, let me just point out that for 2008 and 2009, our record is 19-3-3 (19 correct, 3 wrong, 3 pushes). Here we go…
Marc Davis To Race At Vegas: Our first rumor of 2010 was that Marc Davis would run the NNS race at Las Vegas. The deal was 99% done we’d heard (he was even on the entry list), but ended up falling apart at the last minute. Davis didn’t end up racing. We’ll call it minus one for the Insiders.
Another New Crew Chief for Robby Gordon: We heard in March that after starting the season with Iain Watts as crew chief, newly hired “consultant” Larry Carter would be taking over as crew chief for RGM. We know for certain that he did call some races for the #7 team, but whether or not he was ever actually officially the crew chief is unclear. Carter was one of several to call a race for RGM in 2010. We’ll call this a push.
NASCAR Considering Eliminating Catch Can Man: With the Truck Series as a test bed, we told you early in April that NASCAR was considering eliminating the catch can position and having both the Cup and Nationwide Series use the new self-vented fuel can. Over the course of the year, NASCAR listened to feedback on the rule change from many in the sport, and in the end, the rule was implemented. The official announcement was made just a few short weeks ago. Plus one for the Insiders.
Front Row Penalized Over Bleeder Valves: After Pocono in June, we were the first to tell you about a possible penalty coming from NASCAR over Front Row Motorsports’ possible use of illegal bleeder valves. We heard a short time later that NASCAR was preparing to hand down their biggest penalty for cheating ever. In the end however, Front Row was penalized but it wasn’t a record sanction. Before the penalty was announced, one unsubstantiated rumor we’d heard was that FRM owner Bob Jenkins actually privately pleaded with NASCAR to levy a smaller fine and points penalty, as anything larger would have put him out of business completely. Obviously, there was no way of knowing if that was actually true or not. We’ll call this plus one, and minus one for the Insiders.
Billy Johnson To Drive for RFR at Watkins Glen: We were the first to tell you that GRAND-AM driver Billy Johnson would be making his NNS debut for Roush Fenway Racing at Watkins Glen. Johnson started ninth in RFR’s #6 Ford, but was caught up in a wreck and finished 36th. It was his only NNS race of 2010. Plus one for the Insiders.
TJ Bell Racing with “Green” Sponsor: In August, we reported that T.J. Bell would be racing at Darlington with a new sponsor, Liberty Tire Recycling. Bell went on to make two starts for MAKE Motorsports with Libery on board. Plus one for the Insiders.
Rumors After Watkins Glen: After the NNS race at the Glen, we reported via Twitter that we’d heard NASCAR had taken a box of lugnuts from Marcos Ambrose’s team that they suspected were illegal. The bit was confirmed later by Scene Daily’s Kenny Bruce, but NASCAR ultimately decided there was no issue. In the same post, we told you that Kevin Conway’s days at FRM were numbered. The team had grown tired of his poor performances, and they were looking to bring in another driver. Following denials by his sponsor Extenze (they emailed us specifically), it was announced five days later that Tony Raines would replace Conway for the race at Michigan. We also added that we’d heard Aric Almirola was a candidate for a Cup ride at RPM. Almirola didn’t end up at RPM, but it was reported by both Fox Sports and ESPN that he’d had discussions with the team. We’ll call that plus three for the Insiders.
Darnell & Kenseth To Run RFR NNS Cars: We told you late in August that Roush Fenway would add Erik Darnell and Matt Kenseth to the round robin of drivers getting starts in their NNS cars. Darnell got three starts (Richmond, Dover, Texas), and Kenseth ran at Atlanta to go with two NNS starts he made earlier in the year. Plus one for the Insiders.
RMM Shuts Down #81 Team: Following the Bristol Truck Series race, we told you that Randy Moss Motorsports was shutting down the #81 team of David Starr. RMM did indeed close down their second team, but Starr never missed a beat. After being let go from the #81, he moved over to SS-Green Light Racing and finished the season. RMM would later run a second truck for Tayler Malsam in four races. Plus one for the Insiders.
Turner Motorsports & Marc Davis: While we weren’t the first to report on the possible sale of Braun Racing to Steve Turner, we were the first to tell you it was a done deal and we gave you the first picture of what the new Turner Motorsports would look like. Todd Braun did end up selling his team, and the new Turner Motorsports will have three NCWTS teams and four NNS teams. They will also run Chevrolets. And after a failed attempt to race at Las Vegas earlier in the season, we told you that Marc Davis would be running for R3 Motorsports at Dover. Davis started 30th and finished 23rd. Plus two for the Insiders.
Johanna Long & Tayler Malsam to Trucks: In September, we reported that both Malsam and Long would be making attempts in the NCWTS race at Las Vegas. Both did race at Vegas, and they both ran more races towards the end of the season. Plus two for the Insiders.
Trevor Bayne To RFR: We were the first to report that Bayne to Roush Fenway was a done deal, and that his new team would run a fifth NNS car for him at Kansas in October. Bayne finished out the season with RFR, and is prepared to run a full NNS schedule in 2011, along with an unspecified number of Cup races. Plus one for the Insiders.
Josh Wise To Drive At Charlotte: Josh Wise spent 2010 driving for several different organizations, and we reported in October that he would race at Charlotte for a team backed by veteran tire changer D.J. Copp. Wise started 39th and finished 18th. Plus one for the Insiders.
KHI, Elliott Sadler, RFR Trucks: Later in October we heard that KHI was putting together the personnel for a second full time Nationwide Series team, and that Elliott Sadler may run some races for them. Both turned out to be true, as it was later announced that Sadler will run the full 2011 schedule for KHI with sponsorship from CitiFinancial. We also told you that there were rumors that Ron Hornaday was shopping for a new NCWTS ride. We’d heard he had conversations with several organizations, but he ended up re-signing with KHI. The last bit we gave you was that Roush Fenway was working on resurrecting their Truck Series program. This story has cooled way down since then, but there is still a small chance it could happen. I’ll give us plus one, a push, and leave the RFR bit as still pending.
Caitlin Shaw To Race At Phoenix: In November we told you about yet another female driver who would be racing in 2010. Caitlin Shaw, after making one start in 2009, returned to the Truck Series in a truck prepared by Mario Gosselin’s DGM Racing at Phoenix. She started 33rd and finished 30th. Plus one for the Insiders.
Skinner Out? Kvapil In?: Our most recent rumor for you, we reported that Mike Skinner was likely out at Randy Moss Motorsports, and that the team would replace him with Travis Kvapil. Skinner won’t talk, and no official announcement has come from the team, so we’ll leave this one pending.
As you can see, we had a busy year reporting on the happenings in NASCAR. Our scorecard for the year looks like this: we had 17 correct, two wrong, two pushes, and still have two rumors pending. Adding up all three seasons worth of news and rumors, that makes us 36-5-5. We prove yet again that if you hear it from us, odds are pretty good that it’s true. Our solid track record doesn’t do much to prove that we are who we say we are, but at the very least we are very well connected janitors…
There was a great piece done recently by Scene Daily’s Bob Pockrass about the Nationwide Series’ newest owner, Steve Turner. (We’ve also written previously about Turner.) Towards the end of 2010, Turner became the largest independent owner when he expanded his Truck Series operation to include four NNS teams that he acquired when he purchased Braun Racing. The SD piece and Turner’s recent dealings have me wondering if Turner Motorsports could be on track to being the next major NASCAR team.
Think about what Turner now has in place with his organization. He’s got several solid sponsorship deals (Great Clips, Dollar General, Monster Energy, ABF Freight, Brandt, and others), a stable of young and talented drivers (James Buescher, Brad Sweet, Justin Allgaier, Jason Leffler, Ricky Carmichael, Reed Sorenson), and plenty of good equipment. With the base Turner has built (and bought), it’s not hard to see the team possibly making the jump to Cup competition in the near future.
Of the drivers he has now, two already have Cup experience (Leffler and Sorenson), and if Allgaier continues to improve, there is no doubt that he could be a solid driver to build a Cup program with. Obviously funding would need to be secured, but remember that the new NNS COT isn’t much different then a Cup COT. And with their new relationships with equipment suppliers, a Cup team wouldn’t be a big leap.
I also want to point out the difference between Turner and some of the other new owners we’ve seen come into NASCAR recently. Remember that Turner has been doing this for a while. He didn’t come in with big pockets and immediately buy into a Cup operation. He started small and has owned teams in many lower racing series before moving into the NASCAR big leagues. He has a better idea than most what it takes to survive. And it appears he has the acumen and the resources to make it all work.
At this point, I’m sure Turner and his management team are focused on making the teams they have now successful. It will certainly be a challenge meshing his CWTS operation with what was Braun’s NNS operation and making it work. But if they are able, I don’t think it’s crazy to think that Turner could be on pace to be the next Joe Gibbs, Richard Childress, or Jack Roush.
Nothing surprises me anymore. Add ‘Travis Pastrana to NASCAR’ to that list.
While we don’t have an official announcement, signs are pointing to his making the leap to stock car racing, in one series or another, in the not too distant future.
Pastrana, if you’re not familiar, is a former motocross and now rally star, X Games medalist, and all around mad man. He holds the record for longest ramp-to-ramp jump in a car and he was the host (or head hooligan) of the stunt show Nitro Circus on MTV.
Pastrana has been pretty successful in everything he’s tried. He has two motocross championships to his credit and 14 X-Games medals in various events. And he’s about as fearless as they come. Still, does he have the skills to be successful in NASCAR?
That is something I’m not so sure about. We’ve seen multiple, very successful race car drivers try to transition to NASCAR. It’s either taken them years to find even minimal success, or they haven’t lasted.
Take Ricky Carmichael – a guy who is often referred to as the ‘Greatest of All Time’ for his unrivaled success in motocross. He started running late model races in 2007 under the tutelage of Mark Martin and other very talented drivers. He ran a full K&N Pro Series East season in 2008 and then scattered ARCA and Truck Series races in 2009 before going full time in the Truck Series this season.
Despite his success elsewhere, Carmichael is still a driver very much in development in NASCAR – even after three years. The good news is he’s running better and better every week.
With Pastrana, my hope is that Michael Waltrip Racing (or Diamond Waltrip Racing) doesn’t try to throw him directly into a Nationwide car. We’ve seen how drivers attempting the transition from another racing series have struggled in the cars and the series. As has been apparent with Danica Patrick, Dario Franchitti, Jacques Villeneuve and many others just because you can drive one thing with four wheels well, doesn’t mean you can drive all things with four wheels well.
The above said, I think if anyone is going to barrel into this successfully I think Travis Pastrana could reasonably be the guy to do it. He’s only 27 and has a lot of time to build the necessary skills and still be young. And, I said it once already, but I’ll say it again, the guy is fearless. If you ever watched his show on MTV, you probably saw him do some pretty ridiculous stuff.
I’ll admit this is a bit gimmicky, but it’s so crazy (or maybe Pastrana’s so crazy) it just might work. And as Marty Smith pointed out a few days ago, Pastrana would bring some very welcome personality and energy to the sport. I don’t think we should be pinning the sport’s hope on this however.
At the very least it’ll be interesting to watch. On a side note, I’m glad I’m not paying for the race cars.