NASCAR: What’s wrong with NASCAR? Part 3 – Money and sponsorship

Performance/Money gap

For the first of three topics, we will discuss the competition effect that money has on the sport. Right now, there may be the biggest financial gap in NASCAR history. From the Truck Series and the Xfinity Series to the Cup Series, if you lack money, you lack performance.

Back in time, teams with smaller budgets could still grind their way to solid finishes, with driver talent pushing a team past their capabilities. Nowadays, underfunded teams such as Go Fas Racing and Front Row Motorsports have to survive crash-fest superspeedway races to earn quality results.

The honest truth is that some teams just don’t have the resources to compete against top-tier organizations like Hendrick Motorsports, Stewart-Haas Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing. Those organizations could spend upwards of $20,000,000 to $30,000,000 per car, with other teams spending just a few million dollars in the same time span.

This gap is the difference in research, development and overall team appeal. Teams with more money can afford more powerful engines, better chassis, and most of all, the experts that can build said parts. Money also makes a difference in the number of cars and people a team can afford.

Hendrick Motorsports may have 20+ cars prepared with 50 or more team members. Down the street, a team like Go Fas Racing has just 15 team members and likely only 10 or fewer cars prepared.

The current model gets even worse in the two feeder series. Teams such as Joe Gibbs Racing, JR Motorsports and Team Penske dominate smaller teams like JD Motorsports, Kaulig Racing and BJ McLeod Motorsports in the Xfinity Series. The Truck Series highlights the same dynamic with the drivers of a powerhouse team such as Kyle Busch Motorsports blowing by the trucks fielded by Jordan Anderson and Jennifer Jo Cobb.

The money gap and competitive gap correlate. NASCAR is one of the few sports in which money truly impacts the product. But don’t worry, as I’ll give a popular solution in the coming slides, so stay tuned!