DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Brian France and the NASCAR brain trust had to have felt a twinge of jealousy as they watched another spectacular Super Bowl come to a close.

Played in Tampa just 100 miles south of Daytona International Speedway, the NFL's season finale had everything NASCAR's chairman wants for his family business: A thrilling finish for the deep-pocketed fans and sponsors in attendance, plus millions more watching on TV.

“

We have seen tough times before. We're actually optimistic about '09 for a lot of reasons.

”

-- BRIAN FRANCE

It's a tough act to follow for any major sport, but more so for NASCAR, which heads into the Feb. 15 season opener fighting the effects of the economic crisis.

"It's been an interesting and challenging offseason for everyone," France said recently.

That's putting it mildly.

Because the sport depends so heavily on corporate funding as the primary support for owners, the landscape will look vastly different from a year ago when the track opens Thursday for teams to begin preparations for the Daytona 500.

Many owners have merged, others have slashed their budgets and some have simply folded their race teams. Hundreds of team members have been laid off since November's season-ending race, and the cutbacks spanned the entire spectrum: deep-pocketed Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing and Roush Fenway Racing all made small reductions to their work forces, while underfunded Bill Davis Racing, The Wood Brothers and Petty Enterprises had massive layoffs.

Chrysler, Ford and General Motors are suffering through a steep drop in car sales, while world leader Toyota is facing its own surprising downturn. The monetary and technical support of the four automakers is vital to the race teams.

And the NASCAR fan base, traditionally the blue-collar workers of America, is struggling to afford a weekend at the racetrack.

Despite all the economic issues facing the sport, France remained confident 2009 will prove NASCAR's perseverance.

"In tough times like these, strong people tighten their belts, put a little extra zip in their step, and focus on the things they do best. In our sport, that's racing, and no one does it better than our drivers and teams," France said. "The entire country is going through ... a very difficult economy. We will get through it.

"This is a fixture in American culture -- this sport. We have seen tough times before. We're actually optimistic about '09 for a lot of reasons."

France points to several on-track story lines he hopes will steer focus away from the economy and toward competition:

• Jimmie Johnson will try for a record-breaking fourth consecutive Cup championship.

• Carl Edwards, winner of three of the final four races last season, will try to dethrone him.

• Two-time series champion Tony Stewart will attempt to transition into the difficult duel role of owner and driver.

• Jeff Gordon will try to get back to Victory Lane after his first winless season since 1993.

• Kyle Busch, who dominated the 26-race regular season only to falter in the Chase for the championship, will try to avoid another collapse. (Continued)