Slow economy continues to affect carmakers, sponsors

Everywhere you look these days, the economy is making waves in NASCAR, and some of the folks that are surfing the hardest are the ones NASCAR teams count on the most: manufacturers and sponsors.

For instance, General Motors, which supplies a little more than 30 percent of the starting field each week, announced sweeping cuts, which include several thousand salaried positions, executive compensation and a decrease in production of its truck and SUV lines to focus on smaller, more fuel-efficient cars.

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After already exploring the idea of selling off its Hummer division, other brands might come under scrutiny as well, according to news reports. Chevrolet, however, is not one of those.

In 2003, GM pulled its Pontiac brand out of NASCAR competition to focus on its Monte Carlo and Impala platforms.

Despite its changes before this month, GM stock has hit a series of 50-year lows. GM stock currently trades at about $9.40 per share.

High gas prices, the struggling economy and a shift away from SUVs and trucks to smaller vehicles is part of the problem for GM and the other automakers. Earlier this summer, Ford announced it would cut 15 percent of its salaried workforce by Aug. 1.

As for racing, its budget is on the table for cutting, said company officials.

NASCAR is the biggest of the racing series' that GM supports, to the tune of about $30 million a year. The company also is involved in the Nationwide and Craftsman Truck series', the NHRA, American Le Mans, USAC (with Tony Stewart) and the Sports Car Club of America, among others.

GM's Mark Kent told the media earlier this week that racing "is not exempt from cuts," and that the company was reviewing its involvement to determine the most return on investment.

Part of this is track sponsorships and pace-car programs, which cost a lot of money. Official vehicle programs consist of sponsorship dollars and inventory, as automakers typically supply tracks with vehicles, as well.

It's not just automakers that are suffering these days. Series sponsor Sprint is the subject once again of takeover talks, this time by SK Telecom out of South Korea. SK officials would have to have private equity help to buy Sprint, and the company said it would not pursue a hostile takeover.

Sprint has been plagued by subscriber loss, as have other telecom companies.

Money talks

Several teams face uncertainty as in the weeks to come more of the 2008-09 sponsorship story will begin to take shape.

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The other big news as it pertains to NASCAR is the purchase of Anheuser-Busch by Belgian brewing giant InBev, which also makes Beck's and Stella Artois, for a reported $52 billion.

Budweiser, which sponsors the No. 9 GEM Dodge of Kasey Kahne after sponsoring Dale Earnhardt Jr. for many seasons, is an iconic NASCAR sponsor and currently has no plans to alter its sponsorship, but there are marketing obstacles for the sport.

A new marketing team took over late last year and, according to reports, favors music and concerts over motorsports as the primary brand marketing vehicle. There are reports as well that the Budweiser Shootout will be changing names for 2009, as Bud pulled out of its Pole Award sponsorship at the end of 2007.

Not all the news is bad. Marcos Ambrose will run some Sprint Cup Series races this season for JTG Daugherty Racing. Former NBA player Brad Daugherty bought into JTG Racing, owned by Tad Geshickter, to make it happen.

The team could become the first of several Nationwide organizations to move up to the Cup Series this year, as costs have risen sharply. The team will continue its Nationwide programs with Kelly Bires and Coleman Pressley while Ambrose goes Cup racing with Little Debbie as the sponsor.

On the subject of good news, Petty Enterprises named former Action Performance (now Motorsports Authentics) VP of business development Michael Bartelli as its new chief marketing officer. Bartelli, who began his marketing career at the International Speedway Corp. as director of marketing partnerships, is a racing guy who can help the Petty Enterprises brand maximize its effectiveness.

There's going to be a significant amount of movement on the Cup Series driver side as well, as Ryan Newman, Casey Mears and David Stremme are confirmed free agents and Martin Truex Jr. is somewhere between being a free agent and a "franchise" player with an option year.

That will also jumble the sponsor playing field, as Office Depot is rumored to be on board with Stewart alongside Old Spice for 2009 at Stewart-Haas Racing. Newman could join him there with sponsorship from UPS, though that is not a done deal.

Mears is rumored to be in the fourth Richard Childress Racing car, Stremme is said to be close to the No. 12 Alltel Dodge, which will probably be called something else by next season.

Those are waves that have yet to crest, but should reach shore in the next few weeks.