March 9, 2009
By Matthew Pizzolato
Matthew Pizzolato
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With four races of the 2009 season in the history books, it appears as if the struggling economy is not hurting NASCAR as much as previously thought. All four Cup races have seen a full field, with close to 50 drivers attempting to qualify for one of the 43 starting positions.
It was thought by many that after the Daytona 500, NASCAR would not be able to draw enough cars to each track to make a full field. However, due to the many startup teams that aren’t running a full season, enough cars show have shown up each weekend.
But the situation is not entirely optimistic just yet. General Motors announced recently that it might have to file for bankruptcy. While such a move would certainly be bad for NASCAR, the stock car series could certainly survive without the Chevrolet brand that General Motors builds.
With the Car of Tomorrow that is currently being used, the only difference between the different manufacturers is the decals on the grill of the cars, and of course, the engines. Most of the teams in the upper echelon of NASCAR already build their engines themselves, they just use Chevrolet parts.
Not only would a General Motor’s collapse affect NASCAR, the entire economy would feel the effects of such an action as there are GM facilities throughout the country; several tens of thousands of jobs would be lost. Not to mention the other industries that profit from the supplies that GM purchases each year.
However, NASCAR drivers have faith that the struggling auto-giant will pull through the difficulties.
“The good news is that GM is doing its part with Chevy brands. They're building cars that are affordable and efficient,” Tony Stewart said in a Joe Menzer article for espn.com. “From the manufacturer's side, that's all you can ask for. I think they've really responded and done a good job in that aspect.”
The sponsorship crunch is being felt throughout all of NASCAR as teams struggle to find enough money to go racing. There are several teams in all three of NASCAR’s top series that have posted good results so far this season but have yet to secure a sponsor. Most are feeling the crunch and may soon be forced to shut down simply because they can no longer afford to race.
In the Camping World Truck Series, driver Todd Bodine is not assured of running the entire season, despite winning the season opener at Daytona and being currently ranked second in the point standings. His team managed to sign GEICO for a one race deal at California, but he knows there are no guarantees for the future.
"We're taking it race-to-race. We're definitely not in it, by any means, for every race. Right now, we don't know what's going to happen,” he was quoted as saying in a Mark Aumann article for nascar.com.
The difficult times will only get worse before they get better, for NASCAR and for the entire country. However, the season has been a lot better than many of the pessimists would have allowed just a few months ago.
If you would like to learn more about Matthew, please check out his web site at matthew-pizzolato.com.
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