Will Nationwide Become Too Expensive

[muggle not]

Will Nationwide Become Too Expensive


http://www.news-record.com/apps/pbcs...41/-1/SPORTS02

NASCAR notes: Earnhardt Jr. team might move to Cup

By Dustin Long
Staff Writer
Sunday, May. 18, 2008 3:00 am
CONCORD -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. no longer discounts the idea of moving his Nationwide team to the Sprint Cup Series.

With the Nationwide series expected to switch to the Car of Tomorrow next year, expenses in switching the cars over to the newer models will almost make it worthwhile to be in Cup instead, Earnhardt said. That has him rethinking previous statements that he had no plans to move his team to Cup.

"It's harder to get sponsorships,'' Earnhardt said. "And the COT program is going to be too expensive for me to justify creating a whole new program with COT stuff, so I'd just as soon go into the Cup Series or get out of the Nationwide Series altogether."
Earnhardt admitted he could make the move as early as next season.

"Yeah, maybe,'' he said. "If the right opportunity comes along with the right sponsorship and driver, we'd love to do it."

If his team made such a move, would it go after his friend Martin Truex Jr.?

"No,'' Earnhardt said. "Why would he want to come drive for me? He's in good stuff now, and he's going to have great opportunities from other people. For the first year coming out of the box, man, we'll struggle.



btw, my job in Charlotte is going OK. I have an apartment in uptown Charlotte and walk to and from work. takes me 15 minutes each way.

[johntt]

The real challenge for the NNWS teams is the changeover to their CoT. Like the Sprint Cup its going to be short term pain but long term gain.

The real problem for the Cup/Nationwide series is, in my opinion, too many races and too many repeat visits to tracks.

Cutting 5 or 6 points races would reduce the costs to sponsors, teams, and would help the flagging TV ratings as ther market is now saturated by Nascar which isn't going to last forever with a resurgent Indycar series and the ALMS on the rise.

In terms of Sprint Cup I would suggest that they keep all the current tracks but cut all of them down to one points race with the only double visits being to Daytona, Talladega, Darlington, Lowes, Bristol and Martinsville. I would also bring back Rockingham NC and have the final race at 'Dega.

[Sparky7]

The Nationwide series is probably already too expensive. The new car surely won't help in that regard. When you consider the paltry purses the series offers I wonder what the attraction is for the Cup affiliated teams other than bragging rights.

[R59]

Isn't the idea of going CoT to reduce the running costs but reducing the number of cars that each team needs.

[johntt]

Originally Posted by R59

Isn't the idea of going CoT to reduce the running costs but reducing the number of cars that each team needs.

Yes - the chassis is adaptable enough to allow them to run the same car on short/intermediate/superspeedways/road courses so they don't have to make track specific cars. The car Jimmie Johnson used at Daytona this year was the same one used in the autumn race at Martinsville last year.