Dodge Motorsports Will Not Support Craftsman Truck Series In '09

Dodge Opts Not To Provide Financial Support For Any Craftsman Truck Teams Next Year

Dodge Motorsports Senior Manager Mike Delahanty said that the manufacturer "will not provide any financial support to any teams" in the Craftsman Truck Series next year, according to John Schwarb of ESPN.com. Delahanty said, "We'll have no factory-funded teams. When times are rough, there are certain things that are lower on the priority list than others." Dodge had been a "powerhouse in the Truck Series earlier this decade, winning 46 of 99 races from 2001-04." In recent years, Dodge has "scaled back its involvement, with only Bobby Hamilton Racing-Virginia receiving money" from the auto manufacturer this season. Dodge and parent company Chrysler "have had the sharpest downturn in sales lately among U.S. Big Three automakers." Delahanty said that Dodge's involvement in the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series "is unaffected" (ESPN.com, 9/6).

SUIT AND TIES: In Winston-Salem, Mike Mulhern reports with GEM suing Robby Gordon over a "breach of contract on a proposed sale of Gordon's NASCAR operation," there are "rumblings in the NASCAR garage over what might be the real story behind the suit." The thought is that GEM co-Owners Ray Evernham and George Gillett "don't really want to do that deal with Gordon any more, perhaps because they have a better proposal, or for some other reason." There also is "increasing speculation that [Chip Ganassi Racing Owner] Chip Ganassi ... might also be a potential merger partner with Evernham and Gillett" (WINSTON-SALEM JOURNAL, 9/8).

Petty Feels NASCAR Allowing Teams  To Circumvent Four-Car Rule

PETTY TALK: The WINSTON-SALEM JOURNAL's Mulhern also reports NASCAR driver Kyle Petty is "taking some hard shots at NASCAR's inability to hold Cup team owners in check and to keep the sport's biggest owners from getting even bigger." On his weekly SPEED TV show "Tradin' Paint," Petty "pointed to the close ties between four-team owner Rick Hendrick and Tony Stewart's new two-car team, terming that essentially a six-car operation." Also citing the "new closer business ties" between Richard Childress and Teresa Earnhardt, Petty said, "They just went from super-teams to mega-teams. The thing that NASCAR tried to eliminate they couldn't, because everyone is getting around the rules. And if you think any different, you're wrong." Mulhern notes Petty "drew praise from fellow small-team owners for his blunt assessment about NASCAR's failure to keep the playing ground level" (WINSTON-SALEM JOURNAL, 9/8).