I'm told NASCAR success comes from time not gold

Three new organizations made huge financial commitments to the NASCAR Nextel Cup series this year.  None of the three found the success they sought.

Ginn Racing has been news for the past week with the firing of established drivers Sterling Marlin and Joe Nemechek. The Ginn group may change even more.  Merger and buyout rumors persist.  Dale Earnhardt Inc. is the most mentioned partner.

Michael Waltrip named two time Winston Cup champ Terry Labonte as his replacement in the #55 NAPA Camry for the Indy race, stoking talk of making a permanent driver change.  Meanwhile, the other two Camrys in the MWR stable continue to struggle.  There is now talk that Burger King and Domino's may bail on the #00.

Red Bull Racing is no stranger to throwing mega bucks at racing series.  The one Toyota team that appeared to take a long term view of it's driver line up, struggles to make races.

Last Tuesday ON PIT ROW, I asked veteran NASCAR crew chief Booty Barker what main advantage super teams like Hendrick Motorsports and Roush Racing have over satellite or independent outfits.  I suggested the obvious - money - and he disagreed.

To Barker, the advantage is their longevity. 

Hendrick Motorsports has been around since 1984.  Rick Hendrick has plenty of cash, sure.  But over 30 plus years, he has built a collection of good, talented people.  Then, once in a generation, a Jeff Gordon falls to you.  Or a Mark Martin, in Roush's case. 

It was a great interview.  In it's light, the struggles of the new wanna-be teams is understandable.  Great success would have been an accident. 

Red Bull Racing essentially funds itself. Waltrip and Ginn did a masterful selling job to assemble the sponsorship that kicked off six full-season Cup teams.  Unfortunately they may have oversold expectations.  There is no long history of success to fall back upon. 

Comments

[robert bourne]

I have to agree that Redbull and MWR did a great job of selling but not so good performing...Unfortunately they picked a year (the choice was not entirely their's) with a new car coming on stream...It's a big enough job to get a team started let alone in a year where there are major changes and with a new manufacturer as well..Bootie is right the longevity is a big factor..nothing can substitute for experience and already having your systems in place and running well is an advantage...I'm not sure if MWR will survive or not but at least they tried..RedBull if it is in for the long haul has a chance...What concerns me the most is the barrier you have to overcome to get into the sport..The whole top 35 thing is discouraging for new owners..so where does the fresh blood come from to keep it vibrant...The Busch series is dying on the vine because of the Bushwackers are a big impediment for anyone who had the desire to get in as an owner..the same will happen with Cup..It will narrow down to 10 owners with 4 teams who will control the series.. which could lead to the same scenario that happened in open wheel where a power struggle with the owners and the sanctioning body caused the split and ruined it for everyone..

[Bob]

I've been meaning to ask you guys for a while, is there any place that I can view a transcrip of your show or interviews? On another associated site that I haven't come across, or too stupid to realize, maybe?
I would be interested in at least reading what was said during your interviews.

[Charlie]

I did a transcript once, of an interview that we did with Todd Bodine on the subject of the CoT and how the Trucks were comparable. It took me forever, and I swore to never do it again. Never might be too strong. But in the interim, our shows are archived at RaceTalkRadio.com after the Thursday following the live broadcast, which is on Tuesday. The interviews with NASCAR figures are at 5:30 and 6:30, or the 30 min and 90 min spots in the show. We are working on a podcast format that would put our interviews together with some other show highlights. That should be soon. Thanks for asking and thanks for the comments.