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Dale Earnhardt Jr. is one of NASCARs most popular drivers without a doubt. He has earned this popularity due to his outstanding racing skills that have gotten him to the point where he now is in his career. Earnhardt lately is in a bit of a drought and is looking to break that streak of 62 winless soon. Among NASCAR fans 1/3 people consider Earnhardt their favorite driver. Earnhardt is on the line if he does not start winning some races. At this point he earns around $22 million a year in endorsements which is far more then other drivers. This shocks some since he is far behind other drivers as far as success goes. NASCAR feels Earnhardt is becoming the A-Rod of their sport. Even if Earnhardt doesn't start winning consistant his sponsors won't leave him out in the cold. NASCAR needs Earnhardt to start winning to help the organization as a whole. If the big gun isn't winning people arent watching. Although Earnhardt will still be making his money, NASCAR is losing money while he finishes outside of the top spot. Earnhardt is the big star of the sport and they need him to succeed in order for the organization as a whole to grow.
It's no secret of the financial situation that has taken over the globe. It's also probably no secret that this very situation that has ruined many jobs is also affecting the sports world. One aspect of the sports business world that has truly started to suffer is the naming rights to various stadiums and future stadiums that have plans to be built. With the economy in a mess it's difficult for many big name companies to take over the naming rights of the stadiums. With some teams holding out on choosing a partner until after the economic crisis it's hard to say how this problem will be resolved.
In theory, waiting for the economic crisis to end truly isn't the best solution to this problem. With no real end to this recession in sight, people may need to start thinking of a real solution instead of just waiting. Stadiums are getting more and more expensive whenever they are built, so now it has come down to either finding a reliable partner for naming rights or taking on this burden yourself. Whatever teams decide to choose, hopefully it will be the right one, but for now all the fans can do is sit back and watch as their teams fight through the economic crisis.
For the most part it is clear that our environment is going through some problems, especially with the burning of vast amounts of fossil fuels and the greenhouse gases which leak into our atmosphere. Recently stadiums and arenas across the country have realized that they themselves often times burn some much electricity and create a large amount of waste put into landfills. When a baseball stadium is lit up even for just six hours they use 6,420 kilowatt hours of electricity. What is very surprising is that is how much kilowatt hours it takes to power the average household in the United States for a year. Sport complexes do not have all the answers but they are making an attempt to start somewhere. They are using more bio friendly ink for their printers and are using more bio friendly chemicals to manicure their fields. But still there are many problems to be fixed, such as how many cars drive to just a single game. Of course these problems are far from being solved but at least stadiums and professional leagues are stepping up to attempt to fix problems they have put on our earth.
NASCAR will experience a no-testing policy next season to save millions of dollars during a the U.S. economy downfall. Crews met at Homestead-Miami Speedway to discuss the change being implemented. In the three top three series of the season, Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Craftsman Trucks, the tracks will not be able to be tested. Pat Tryson, the crew chief for the No. 2 Dodge driven by Kurt Bush, said "It has pluses and minuses," in that times are rough but perhaps the change will make the races more interesting and could end up benefiting many racers. What makes this decision so crucial is NASCAR planned to increase testing to 24 sessions per team, with every Cup track included. A staggering fact is teams spend more than $3 million a season on testing and that mone
y will hopefully rejuvenize the sport during these hard times. However, teams can continue testing but not on NASCAR tracks.
Personally, not even being a NASCAR fan, I think that this idea of cutting out testing for these crews is great. It is not good that our economy is really struggling now and it is hurting our sports, but by taking out these test sessions other teams are going to get great oppurtunities to rise. Smaller, less strong crews and drivers will now have an even greater oppurtunity to contend with the big boys. The races, I believe, will now be more spontaneous and less boring. Because of no testing on these courses, drivers will further have to show their driving skills and abilities in order to adjust to quick situations. Maybe this is a step that the NASCAR had to take in order to shake up the sport. We will see once the season begins.
Last Wednesday at the SEMA show, Ray Evernham was approached by a fan inquiring about what driver he will be bringing to Gillett Evernham Motorsports the upcoming season. Evernham responds implying that there will be a new driver but he will not be involved. Over the past few years, his involvement with the company has decreased immensely and he is looking to end his career with GEM, not with racing. His future definitely doesn't involve owning another racing team. He wants a role that allows him to spend more time with his son and have a more open schedule. Being considered one of the greatest innovators in racing, his involvement with racing is definitely not ending. It is almost ironic that since his decrease of involvement, GEM's performance has suffered. He hopes that GEM function just as well without him and accomplish much more. He is excited to move onto the next stage of his life.
I think that Evernham is doing great things with his life leaving GEM. He has been with them for so many years and has done great things for them. Racing is obviously his passion and it will be for the rest of his life.
Jimmie Johnson took home his second consecutive Nextel Cup Championship on Sunday, November 19, 2007. Team owner, Rick Hendrick said it was "his time" this year, and he did just that.
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HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- Totally calm and cool, Jimmie Johnson left the pre-race drivers' meeting Sunday afternoon flashing the peace sign at people wishing him luck.
Two fingers.
Two consecutive championships.
Johnson became the first driver to win consecutive championships since Jeff Gordon in 1997 and '98, wrapping up the title by finishing a trouble-free seventh in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Matt Kenseth won the race. (read more)
When it was over, he and crew chief Chad Knaus were already thinking about a third.
"We're just really hitting our stride," Johnson said. "I think that we have a lot of good years ahead of us and we'll be fighting for more championships and certainly winning more races as the years go by, and hopefully be a three-time champion in the near future."
This Sunday drive was a coronation, and Johnson knew it. Deep down, so did everyone else, too. NASCAR is changing eras next season, but the Johnson era atop the sport is just getting started.
Team owner Rick Hendrick was along for the ride when Gordon ruled the sport, and said it's clear this is Johnson's time now.
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As reported on sportingnews.com
With the title sponsorship in place, Nationwide is expected to build ties to International Speedway Corp., as well. ISC owns 11 NASCAR tracks, and the current insurance category sponsor is AAA Insurance -- it is the "official auto club" of ISC's tracks.
It has not yet been announced what Nationwide will call the racing series, which also has been labeled the Grand National and the Late Model Sportsman series.
NASCAR will have some sponsorship sorting out to do. Currently, Allstate is the official insurance company of NASCAR, and Nationwide Insurance likely will take over that role.
ESPN The Magazine and BusinessWeek have compiled a list of the Top 100 most powerful people in all of sports. The list includes athletes, coaches, owners, agents and other executives. NFL Commissioner, Roger Goodell, is number 1 on their list.
"Who wields power in sports? In a special project with BusinessWeek, ESPN The Magazine spotlights many of the people -- from the suits to the jocks -- influencing the games you love."
On September 25th Nascar released that they would move to Coors as their official beer sponsor instead of Budweiser. Nascar entered a five-year, $20 million contract with Coors which will give Coors the right to the Nascar logo in their own advertising. This news also brings about the question what is to be done with the Bud Shootout, an annual race put on by Budweiser. After the contract with Coors it is still undetermined what will be done with the race and if it will still go on.David Newton of ESPN writes,
" CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The future of the Budweiser Shootout after the 2008 season has yet to be determined with Tuesday's announcement that Coors Light will be the new official beer of NASCAR.
The Shootout, a season-opening, non-points event between the previous year's pole winners and past champions at Daytona International Speedway, will be run in 2008 under the Budweiser name."
How will Nascar fans react to one of the Nextel Cup's most popular driver's number being taken over by another Nascar driver. ESPN.com is reporting Mark Martin will take over the #8 car of former Dale Earnhardt Incorporated driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. Mark Martin is no Nascar slouche but he doesn't carry near the amount of endorsement power or popularity with fans as Dale Earnhardt Jr. Nascar fans have recognized the #8 car with Dale Earnhardt Incorporated for the past three decades.
RICHMOND, Va. -- Mark Martindidn't have to look far on Friday to see the number he'll drive the next two seasons for Dale Earnhardt Inc. Parked next to the No. 01 hauler he's shared this season with Aric Almirola and Regan Smith was the No. 8 hauler currently occupied by Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Martin and Almirola will take over the car and number driven by NASCAR's most popular driver in 2008. Martin also will split the ride in 2009.
"I know that there will be a backlash from a certain number of his [Earnhardt's] fans," Martin said before practice at Richmond International Raceway. "But you have to understand that number has a lot of meaning to Dale Earnhardt Inc.
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