Nascar Teams Struggling to Secure Sponsorships Due to Failing Economy

Nascar might be doing well on the track with high television ratings but with a plummeting economy, teams are struggling to compete in the sport with redundancies becoming a regular occurrence.

Several teams are contemplating layoffs during a downturn in the economy, when sponsorship has become harder to secure. The most prudent example came this week, when Turner Motorsports released Nationwide Series championship contender Reed Sorenson and advised employees it might downsize at the end of the season, after sponsor Dollar General announced it would not return in 2012.

Nascar Chairman Brian France said Sunday he’s not oblivious to teams’ financial concerns, but he remains optimistic the economy will not cause long-term problems for the sport.

“I’ve always said I’m not an economist,” France said, “but I know what you know, and it’s very difficult out there for companies, and people in general, and that has an impact on us.”

France said the one positive that comes from teams downsizing is it creates opportunities for other teams contemplating a move to NASCAR’s top tier.

“We’ll see in the offseason teams thinking about moving up that didn’t want to because there wasn’t availability or they couldn’t make an event,” France said. “I hope everybody comes back, I hope everybody gets what they need to compete, but if the economy is difficult, it does allow opportunities for others. I guess that’s the only silver lining to it.”

Also negotiations have begun with Sprint to remain the title sponsor of NASCAR’s top tier. Sprint is in the eighth year of a 10-year, $750 million contract.

The struggling wireless carrier, based in suburban Kansas City, posted its 15th consecutive quarterly loss in July. The nation’s third-largest carrier also reported more contract customers defecting to rivals AT&T and Verizon than some analysts had expected.

France said: “It’s a program that’s worked well for them and we’re in a time where we’re having those kinds of discussions about extending the relationship. My hope is that we will.”