Allmendinger, driver of the #51 Guy Roofing Chevrolet, drives through the garage area during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Fresh Fit 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on March 2, 2013
Photo – Christian Petersen/Getty Images
Phoenix Racing is having one of its best seasons yet in the Sprint Cup series but that all may come to an end in the middle of this season. With lack of sponsorship, James Finch, owner of Phoenix Racing may close down the team.
The team is having its best season yet, including two top-ten and five top-15 finishes, and with lack of full-time sponsorship may come to an end. The News Herald reported on Tuesday that Phoenix Racing is scheduling to close shop after the Sprint Cup series races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 28.
“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.”
After the Brickyard 400, the team plans to not enter anymore Sprint Cup events. Finch plans to wrap up the team’s duties before the Chase gets under way in the Sprint Cup series.
“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 on his team’s search for a permanent sponsor. “I’m getting kind of burned out. I think it is time for me to do something else.”
After a sixth-place finish at Talladega on Sunday, Phoenix Racing is now tied for the 13th in Sprint Cup owner points with an eye on the top-ten.
With only small blocks of sponsorship and single race deals, Finch is losing a considerable amount of money supporting his own team.
“I don’t want to lose everything I’ve got trying to outrun people,” Finch said. “I can’t do that. It’s time to do something else and go from there. I’ve still got some cars I haven’t torn up. And I don’t want to build any new ones.”
Unless Phoenix Racing finds a full-time sponsor, it looks inevitable that Finch will close the team’s doors. Once the team doors close, Finch plans to help all 18 employees find their next job.
