Dodge has been SOLD !

[RaceFanStan]

With the high cost of Nextel Cup racing .....

Will factory support be cut or eliminated ?
Will team sponsorship for Evernham MotorSports be withdrawn ?
The buyers will be looking for ways of cutting expenses, will Dodge stay in NASCAR ? :eek:

The current Dodge teams & where they stand :
Points Rank - Car - Team
08. #2 Dodge ~ Penske Racing
14. #12 Dodge ~ Penske Racing
17. #19 Dodge ~ Evernham MotorSports
19. #43 Dodge ~ Petty Enterprises
21. #42 Dodge ~ Ganassi Racing
22. #40 Dodge ~ Ganassi Racing
29. #41 Dodge ~ Ganassi Racing
30. #9 Dodge ~ Evernham MotorSports
31. #45 Dodge ~ Petty Enterprises

Currently out of the Top 35 :
37. #10 Dodge ~ Evernham MotorSports
45. #49 Dodge ~ BAM Racing

[Jonesi]

With the high cost of Nextel Cup racing .....
Will factory support be cut or eliminated ?
Will team sponsorship for Evernham MotorSports be withdrawn ?
The buyers will be looking for ways of cutting expenses, will Dodge stay in NASCAR ? :eek:

Nothing should change this year. Most of the Dodge teams have a contract through 2009. So even if the new owners want to cut back it may cost almost as much to buy out the contracts as staying in. If it doesn't look like the new ownership is commited to racing at the level necessary to win, watch for Penske and Ganassi to ask out of their contracts.

[trumperZ06]

;) Hhmmm... Penske switching to Toyota... replacing MW's opperation ???

[SmokeFan20]

;) Hhmmm... Penske switching to Toyota... replacing MW's opperation ???

Penske switching to Chevrolet, to pick up Dale Earnhardt Jr.

[call_me_andrew]

I could see Penske switching to Toyota. The same goes for Ganassi.

I think the COT makes factory support a thing of the past.

[harvick#1]

Penske goin to Porsche, oh wait he already does, maybe Penske will back off Nascar and start working on the Spyder to run at Lemans

[call_me_andrew]

Penske goin to Porsche, oh wait he already does, maybe Penske will back off Nascar and start working on the Spyder to run at Lemans

Porsche doesn't want the car to run at Le Mans. It's Porsche's operation. Penske is more of a mascot for the operation.

[harvick#1]

they won't run at lemans for now, but they are tearing up Utah right now :eek:

[Hoss Ghoul]

The situation with Porsche, the ALMS, and LeMans is complicated, but Penske could easily run there without sacrificing anything from his other operations, Cup included.

Off topic, but the LMP2 Porsche Spyders were developed as an extension of the 911 GT1 and Supercup cars, to give independent sports car teams another higher-level option. I could see Porsche and Penske making a run at LeMans in the near future, especially with the upcoming rule changes mandating closed cockpit cars for LMP1. Even though Porsche had some semi-recent embarrasment at LeMans they are still the most dominate team/manufacturer in the race's history, they'll be back at some point.

[ms0362]

;) Hhmmm... Penske switching to Toyota... replacing MW's opperation ???


Interesting.... if someone could turn it around it would be him.

[harvick#1]

Off topic, but the LMP2 Porsche Spyders were developed as an extension of the 911 GT1 and Supercup cars, to give independent sports car teams another higher-level option. I could see Porsche and Penske making a run at LeMans in the near future, especially with the upcoming rule changes mandating closed cockpit cars for LMP1. Even though Porsche had some semi-recent embarrasment at LeMans they are still the most dominate team/manufacturer in the race's history, they'll be back at some point.

I sure hope the Spyder will go to France and race, I'd like to see the Porsche go up against Audi and Peugeot for the win.

They got acouple of the worlds best drivers and sort of been surprised not to see Sascha drive a road course for Penske's Cup team. I think he can easily win one of them.

[L5->R5/CR]

Dodge will stick around if there is good branding ROI still available after the COT becomes a reality.

Nascar is too lucrative for the manufacturers that are able to spend what is necessary. Besides, with the COT they will only be focusing on powerplants anyway...

[Jag_Warrior]

Nascar is too lucrative for the manufacturers that are able to spend what is necessary. Besides, with the COT they will only be focusing on powerplants anyway...

One of the more knowledgeable fans can add to this, but I've read that all of the factories also spend a good deal assisting teams with chassis development and suspension tuning. The COT limits what can be changed. But as Hendrick Motorsports is showing (with their COT program), understanding and exploiting the chassis is as important as ever.

I'm not a fan of Cerberus or their style. My guess is they'll make cuts to all of the racing programs. We'll just have to wait and see if they go from cutting fat to sawing off muscle and bone. But one thing I think is for certain: the Chrysler of 2010 will look nothing like the Chrysler of 2007... for better or worse.

[Old3Fan]

When Nascar allows Toyota truck engines in the big show like they allow GM and Ford, Chip and the Captain will be on the Toyota payroll in a flash counting the cash $$$$$$$.