One of NASCAR’s favourite little guy teams may be shutting its’ garage doors after the Brickyard 400.
According to a Florida newspaper team owner, James Finch, unable to find a sponsor for his Phoenix Racing team may be leaving Sprint Cup racing.
"I'm contemplating finishing up this year, and I don't know if I want a sponsor," Finch said Monday. "Sunday was my 776th start in NASCAR between the Nationwide and Sprint Cup. That's a lot of weekends. I'm considering pulling the plug later in the summer."
The 62 year-old Finch, a Panama City, Fl construction company owner, told the News Herald that he would not enter races after the Brickyard 400 weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway at the end of July.
"I have not been able to get the right amount of funding, the economy is pretty bad, and a lot of people don't want to do it," Finch said of his team's fruitless search for a permanent sponsor. "I'm getting kind of burned out. I think it is time for me to do something else."
Ironically Phoenix Racing is having one of its’ most successful years in both the Nationwide and Sprint Cup. But it’s not good enough to obtain a sponsor to compete with the $15 to $20-million dollar budget of some of NASCAR’s more famous.
To be minimally competitive it requires numerous iterations of the 3400 pound Gen-6 stock car.
"I've still got some cars I haven't torn up,” said Finch, “and I don't want to build any new ones."
He’s hired the famous and sometimes infamous drivers over the years. Brad Keselowski, the 2012 Sprint Cup Champion, drove one of Finch’s cars to Victory Lane in Talladega in 2009.
When Kurt Busch left Penske Racing Finch hired him, and this year another former Penske NASCAR driver A.J. Allmendinger.
Racing part-time and full-time in the Nationwide Series since 1989 Finch counts 13 victories.
In recent years Phoenix purchased equipment from Hendrick Motorsports and competed full-time at the Cup level since 2011.
He’s even given a chance to up and comers such as Richard Childress’ grandson, Austin Dillon. "I started with all my friends, and now I'm racing with a lot of their sons," Finch said. "Austin Dillon, he's a little kid who drove for me (twice this season). I remember when he was born."
According to a Florida newspaper team owner, James Finch, unable to find a sponsor for his Phoenix Racing team may be leaving Sprint Cup racing.
"I'm contemplating finishing up this year, and I don't know if I want a sponsor," Finch said Monday. "Sunday was my 776th start in NASCAR between the Nationwide and Sprint Cup. That's a lot of weekends. I'm considering pulling the plug later in the summer."
The 62 year-old Finch, a Panama City, Fl construction company owner, told the News Herald that he would not enter races after the Brickyard 400 weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway at the end of July.
"I have not been able to get the right amount of funding, the economy is pretty bad, and a lot of people don't want to do it," Finch said of his team's fruitless search for a permanent sponsor. "I'm getting kind of burned out. I think it is time for me to do something else."
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| AJ Allmendinger, Phoenix Racing. (Photo: NASCAR) |
Ironically Phoenix Racing is having one of its’ most successful years in both the Nationwide and Sprint Cup. But it’s not good enough to obtain a sponsor to compete with the $15 to $20-million dollar budget of some of NASCAR’s more famous.
To be minimally competitive it requires numerous iterations of the 3400 pound Gen-6 stock car.
"I've still got some cars I haven't torn up,” said Finch, “and I don't want to build any new ones."
He’s hired the famous and sometimes infamous drivers over the years. Brad Keselowski, the 2012 Sprint Cup Champion, drove one of Finch’s cars to Victory Lane in Talladega in 2009.
When Kurt Busch left Penske Racing Finch hired him, and this year another former Penske NASCAR driver A.J. Allmendinger.
Racing part-time and full-time in the Nationwide Series since 1989 Finch counts 13 victories.
In recent years Phoenix purchased equipment from Hendrick Motorsports and competed full-time at the Cup level since 2011.
He’s even given a chance to up and comers such as Richard Childress’ grandson, Austin Dillon. "I started with all my friends, and now I'm racing with a lot of their sons," Finch said. "Austin Dillon, he's a little kid who drove for me (twice this season). I remember when he was born."