NASCAR Cup Series: Another team’s future in jeopardy?
By Asher Fair
After the sale of Leavine Family Racing, NASCAR could be at risk at another Cup Series team being sold due to a lack of sponsorship.
The coronavirus pandemic hit some teams harder than others, and that was evident when it was rumored and then ultimately announced that Leavine Family Racing had sold their NASCAR Cup Series team and would not run the #95 Toyota beyond the conclusion of the 2020 season.
Now the sport’s top level of competition is at risk of losing another team due to a lack of funding.
Germain Racing have been backed by GEICO since 2009. But the longtime sponsor of the one-car Bob Germain-owned operation is set to enter the final 10 races of the 2020 season without a deal to return as the primary sponsor of the #13 Chevrolet for next year.
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Germain Racing currently run the #13 Chevrolet with a charter through a technical alliance with the two-car Richard Childress Racing organization. Ty Dillon, whose grandfather is Richard Childress, has driven the car since the 2017 season and signed a multi-year extension along with GEICO at the end of that year.
As with any rumors during Silly Season, they should be treated as rumors until proven otherwise. However, in response to those rumors, Germain Racing released an official statement earlier this week confirming several aspects of these rumors as possibilities.
Everything remains on the table, and there is no sponsor lined up to back the team in 2021, which even leaves a sale as a possibility.
Here is what the team said in a statement about the matter.
"“At this time, anything is on the table. Germain Racing does not have a signed sponsorship contract for 2021, and Bob Germain is exploring conversations for a potential sale.”"
Notably, GEICO, the “Official Insurance Provider of NASCAR”, became one of the four Premier Partners of the Cup Series, the other three being Coca-Cola, Xfinity Series and Busch, when the sport introduced the new sponsorship model for the series back in early December, so in terms of their investment in the sport, that doesn’t look like it is going to be going away.
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But unfortunately in terms of Germain Racing and their future beyond the conclusion of this year, that may not matter much.