By Staff
Each and every year during the NASCAR season, drivers, crew chiefs, team members and sponsors begin announcing changes that will be made for the next season of competition. This annual occurrence is called "Silly Season" and it seems to start a little earlier every year. This season is no exception.
The announcement that Toyota is going to enter the NASCAR racing series beginning next year really got things going and one of the first announcements was that Brian Vickers would be leaving Hendrick Motor sports to drive for team Red Bull next year.
Then Casey Mears announced he would be leaving Chip Ganassi to go to the empty Hendrick seat. Dale Jarrett will drive for Michael Waltrip's Toyota team next year and he is taking UPS as his sponsor along with him. There are tons of other rumors swirling about as well. Elliott Sadler, Jarrett's current teammate is leaving the Robert Yates team at the end of the year but hasn't said where he is going.
This leaves the Yates organization with no drivers to pilot their racecars next season, a sad thing considering the long history of that organization. There are two more Toyota rides open for next year and rumors are abound that another will soon open up with Jeremy Mayfield leaving Ray Evernham's Dodge-sponsored car.
It seems that free agency, the almighty dollar and the notion that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence has invaded NASCAR. Doesn't anyone honor a contract anymore? Some of these drivers and sponsors still have time left on their existing contracts but that doesn't seem to matter to them. They simply buy out the remaining obligations. I guess if you look at things the same way we do when we are unhappy with our job – meaning if we aren't happy we find a new one – some of it makes sense. But what happened to loyalty and integrity? The answer is simple – money. NASCAR, and all professional sports for that matter, have seen huge increases in athlete's contracts. The sponsors are being asked to spend more money, and who is the one that gets hit hardest? The fans do of course and we feel it in our wallets. Someone has to cover the increased costs and it is absorbed by higher ticket prices and increased sports merchandise costs. We even feel the pain when watching the races on TV each week. NASCAR demands such a high price from the networks that air the broadcasts that they in turn must sell more advertising to get a return on their investment. There was a stretch during the telecast of the Brickyard last week where TV ran three sets of commercials in the span of 15 laps. Are we tuning in to watch the race or the commercials? I have been reading and hearing from fans that the best way to cure these issues is to boycott the races. For this race fan that simply isn't possible, as I have to get my racing fix each week.
Silly season creates lots of rumors and great stories in the press. It also gives fans new hope for the upcoming season as their favorite driver makes a move to a new team. Racing is a business, and in order to be successful in business changes sometimes have to be made. Some are good and some are not so popular or don't reap the rewards. There will surely be more changes announced in the weeks to come and I have a feeling that there will be a couple of bombshells that will have race fans everywhere buzzing. Stay tuned friends, this soap opera is getting interesting.