joemoia

Article from the Feb issue of C&D which describes the "start and park" stratagey of some NASCAR teams to make money; show up at the race with minimal support (no pit crew, extra tires, fuel, etc.), qualify and make the field, then quit the race after a few laps.


MSRP Motorsports ran 2 un-sponsored entries in the Nationwide series: 61 starts, 61 DNFs, $1.2 mil in prize money with an estimated season cost of $700K (not counting the initial cost of the cars at $80K/ea)

http://www.caranddriver.com/features...ing_game-sport

RC45

Sounds like a decent job if you can get it

AU N EGL

Maybe a NASCAR team like this could support an ALMS effort?

Speed Direct

That's not a bad racket. Maybe I'm in the wrong business...

BrianCunningham

Something's definitely wrong there.

beerkat

I thought that this thread would say something like..

If you want to make money auto racing then do not get started in it.

Joy of 6

My thought was the really old joke that if you want to make 1 million in racing start with 4 million

0Louis @ LG Motorsports

I dont think some of you realize how difficult it really is to make the show in a nationwide or truck race.

88Z51

steponc

Or, The easiest way to double your money is to fold it over and put it back in your pocket

ryan0

should 'making the show' 61 times and having 61 DNFs earn you a half a mill?

davidfarmer

they found a unique venue for this, I think. Most series make entry fee's higher than winnings (except for the top few spots), and qualifying isn't something that would be easy to maintain. I'm surprise the sanctioning body allowed them to continue this for an entire season.

AU N EGL

Have to fill the field some how.

Limiting owners to 4 cars with the occasional 5th car for a rookie. Wonder how many Start and Park teams there are?

rfn026

Listen to what Lou has to say on this one. You can't believe how hard it is to get into the show. Also, it only works in the truck series, and once in a while in the Nationwide Series. It's almost impossible to do in the Cup series.

Ron Fellows is a good example of how hard it really is in NASCAR. Look at his record in the ALMS and then look at his record in NASCAR.

The only way it's possible is because NASCAR pays decent. You can win everything in the ALMS and still not cover the motel bills. Sports car racing has always been diver funded and always will be. Grand AM covers all the cost with entry fees and crew passes. A Grand AM race makes a profit before the very first spectator buys a ticket.

On the other hand maybe Lou should give up on the Corvettes and start think about a Toyota truck.

Richard Newton
Corvette Tech Stuff
My Speed TV Blog