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The Return of Loose in Turn Three

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by Charlie Turner

Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. The best NASCAR and IndyCar news and opinion, exclusive pictures and video. I'm Charlie Turner. Follow me on Twitter @onpitrow

July 11, 2008 8:41 am CDT 5 Comments

The Return of Loose in Turn Three I wonder which would be the bigger news on the 2008 press conference circuit, Tony Stewart’s partnership with Hass-CNC to form Stewart -Haas Racing, or an announcement that Dale Earnhardt Jr was indeed, moving his JR Motorsports up to the Sprint Cup ranks? 

Thinking about that could get you all Loose in Turn 3. 

It has been reported that Dale Earnhardt Jr’s JR Motorsports has lost the Navy sponsorship for the #88 Nationwide Series car for 2009. If you’re Junior, now what?

Charlie: I assume that this was not a total surprise to JR Motorsports. I also believe Junior,  when he said it didn’t make much sense to run the Nationwide Series if it required the same investment as a Sprint Cup program. So, to me, the next step is to explore the feasibility of moving up to Cup. I mean, if you have to look for a sponsor anyway - and there are some Cup level sponsors in play - what do you have to lose? Coincidentally, it was leaked that Teresa Earnhardt is looking at selling DEI. It may not be the perfect storm, but that’s two situations that could work out to make a lot of sense, if the party’s involved want to talk. Otherwise I say JR Motorsports stays in Nationwide.

Bruce: Hmm. No Navy? Go Army!! Go Cup!! I don’t see why Jr Motorsports would not move to Cup if it’s the same kind of costs. Hopefully it will be similar results and better exposure in Cup to be able to retain the sponsor, regardless of who it is.

TZ: Honestly, I haven’t heard a whole lot about this rumor, so I can’t really speak to the validity of it. I’m also not a big expert on sponsors in the Nationwide Series in terms of who may or may not be in the market next season, but I would imagine that if the Navy pulls out, then someone else will be more than willing to step in. Whether it’s as a driver or as a car owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a marquee name not only in NASCAR, but in all aspects of American entertainment. Now, whether or not he would want to keep that team at the NNS level or move up to the Cup, who knows. But, I still believe that now is not the right time. His focus right now should be on trying to win his first championship with Hendrick Motorsports, or at least getting into the rythm where consistent top-five finishes becomes the norm for that team. I’d expect him to give some more serious thought to moving JR Motorsports up to the Sprint Cup heading into the 2010 season.

That’s what we think. How about you?

Leave your feedback in the comments section then head over to TZ’s DoYouNascar for his question of the week…

Q: With Tony Stewart’s departure from Joe Gibbs Racing, who should they look to fill the #20 seat?

Bruce’s NASCAR Bits has this topic to chew on…

With the rumors of Ryan Newman signing on with Tony Stewart under Haas-CNC, and Jack Daniels as his sponsor, do you think his on-track performance will improve?

Photo credit: Icon Sports Media Inc.

Filed under: Brad Kesolowski, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Dale Earnhardt, Inc., Hendrick Motorsports, JR Motorsports, NASCAR Bidness, NASCAR Rumors, Nationwide Series, Sprint Cup Series, Tony Stewart, Top 35 Rule, Turn 2 posts 

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Comments

5 Responses to “The Return of Loose in Turn Three”

  1. User Avatar Marc on July 11th, 2008 4:06 pm

    Well, part of the premise behind this question is well, questionable.

    I don’t buy for a hot second Junior’s contention costs in NNS match those of a Cup team. If that were the case primary sponsorship, reportedly in the 4-8 mil range vice 25 mil, would be much higher in NNS.

    The one caveat I’d toss in is NASCAR introducing the NNS version of the CoT in 2009. If they are dumb enough (with a capitial “D”) to force NNS teams into running both cars after mid-season it may be in the best interests of JR Motorsports to move up to Cup.

  2. Who’s Going to Fill the #20 Seat at Joe Gibbs Racing? on July 11th, 2008 7:00 pm

    [...] It has been reported that Dale Earnhardt Jr’s JR Motorsports has lost the Navy sponsorship for… [...]

  3. User Avatar Charlie Turner on July 11th, 2008 8:47 pm

    Hey Marc. They are Dumb enough.

    Not only that. ARCA has plans to introduce the Cot starting in 2011. When I asked if saving money was part of the reason, I was almost laughed. For ARCA, it’s mostly a safety issue. That, I’m sure, is the main motivation for the NW Series CoT as well.

  4. Tim Zaegel on July 14th, 2008 7:29 pm

    I think when we hear the term “just as expensive” for these guys to run a team in the NNS as the Cup, I think - like Mark said - it’s based more on the COT costs. I also don’t believe that it costs anywhere near the same to actually run the team for a season, but his comments on costs may be more directed at the cost of converting the cars over to the COT format. It may also have something to do with payouts, and a Junior owned car would certainly land some high sponsorship dollars in the Cup.

  5. User Avatar Charlie Turner on July 16th, 2008 9:54 am

    We spoke with Mike Bliss early in the season. Bliss drives for Fitz Motorsports in NNS. To hear him talk about trying to compete with the Cup teams that run in NNS and the NNS teams owned by Cup drivers - the Kevin Harvick Racings and JR Motorsports of the NNS world - was like listening to the defenders of the Alamo. When we threw in the new NNS CoT, the conversation just sort of trailed off. The costs are escalating faster than the already scarce sponsor dollars can keep up. That discrepency between revenue and investment, coupled with the smaller payouts compared to the Cup races, could make the option of moving up, attractive to the teams with the right sponsor contacts.

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