Reading several opinions through social media there has been a topic that has caught my mind.  Sponsors on major teams and not going to start and park organizations, well here is what I have to say on the topic of discussion.

Sponsors are not out to lose money with a small team and no-name driver.  They want to have success on the track and with the advertisement program that a team has and they know that having a bigger organization it will cost more to sponsor the team, however, in the end they make more through the advertisement that certain drivers can provide.  Take UPS for instance, they were a full-season sponsorship on the No. 6 Ford Fusion last season and for the past 3 seasons with David Ragan, this year they have cut back their sponsorship to a one race deal with Carl Edwards at Kentucky.  Why many are asking?  Well the fact is who can provide the sponsors more air time?  Carl Edwards or David Ragan, and who finishes up front more regularly?

Edwards may only have that 1 race with UPS, however, their logo will be on the car for the entire season and they feel that it will give them more advertisement from the 99 car as an associate sponsor than as a full-time sponsor on the 6 car.  Kellogg’s did the same-thing a few years back when they went from being a full-time sponsor on the 5 car at Hendrick Motorsports to only 2 races, and now 4 this season after re-signing a multi-year deal on the 99 car.  Fortune 500 companies want a good face to appear with their name, not a driver that has trouble finishing with consistency on the track.

Roush Fenway has struggled to find sponsorship for its other 3 cars, and fans have questioned why Kellogg’s, Subway, UPS, or Best Buy didn’t just go with the 17 car full-time.  Here is what someone who did not want to be named mentioned “Carl Edwards attracts sponsorships to whomever he runs for, he is a natural spokesperson for the sponsor, he takes care of them and he can finish up front, if it were not for Edwards the 99 car would be in the same state as the 17 and 6.”

The fact is, back in the 90′s, sponsors could afford to handle one entire season in Sprint Cup, now with the state of the economy isn’t the same and there aren’t many companies that can handle forking out 14-18 million dollars a race season to one team.  If people can go back and remember to when Aflac signed on with Edwards at first, it was rumored to be over 20 million a season and in the end they began to sell part of their season off.  Then this season Fastenal is taking over as the main majority sponsor for 15 points races, and 3 non-points races.

There are some drivers that can carry a sponsor without having wins and a lot of success, look at Dale Earnhardt Jr., his fans still flock to his hauler every weekend and his stuff sells, which helps keep money flowing to the car.  Edwards is the same way, he had a couple of losing seasons, but was able to keep sponsorship on the car and has came back solid.  There will be six sponsors on the car this season.  Let’s not forget a companies image and how drivers can effect that.  Good example of that came from two brothers in Sprint Cup last season with Kyle and Kurt Busch.  One had their sponsorship lifted from the car after he pulled a stunt at Texas wrecking another driver, and then the other lost his job by pulling another stunt at the season finale and the sponsor felt it was best to find someone different and with a better imagine in the race car.

Sponsors are very picky about who they want inside their cars and they play more of a role in choosing who they go with than the team owners do.  Driver attraction can be the biggest part because I think had Edwards gone to JGR instead of staying at RFR, he would have taken Aflac with him.  However, he made the decision and stayed.  Back in the day it was more of the car that sponsors looked at on who to sponsor, now it is the driver and Carl Edwards is a main attraction for them.  Fans can bicker about sponsors not wanting to be on the start and park cars, but you can’t expect big names company to put a pile of money into a team with little or no success at all.

Then there is the debate about the manufacturers and who they support in majority situations.  Every manufacturer has a team that they primarily support, Roush Fenway is Fords prime organization, Edwards is the face of Ford, Hendrick’s is Chevrolet’s prime team, Johnson has been the big face of Chevrolet, Gibbs has been Toyota’s prime team, with Busch as its main driver, and Dodge has only had Penske the past two seasons and it will have drivers Brad Keselowski and AJ Allmindinger.  I am in support of NASCAR cutting the field down to 36 cars per race, and it will make things more competitive on the track, atleast until the economy can pull itself back up.

Carl Edwards and Bob Osborne hope the near miss from 2011 gives them the edge to do better in 2012(credit Autostock)

It was tough losing the championship last season for both driver and crew chief.  On a day when the 99 car seemed to be the dominant chassis in the field, Edwards fell one position short of winning the championship to Tony Stewart.  It also showed the signs of maturity for both Carl Edwards and his long-time crew chief Bob Osborne who made several decisions during the event that he questioned later on.  It was just two seasons ago that Denny Hamlin faced a similar situation and many questioned if he would be able to rebound, however, the difference was, Carl Edwards did not let someone get in his head and force a loss of concentration and determination as Hamlin did the year before with Jimmie Johnson.

Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus had to go through very similar seasons before they finally won their first series’ championship in 2006.  Johnson had been a title contender every year since he began racing, and lost the 2004 title to Kurt Busch by a slim 8 points.  The fact is, drivers have to lose before they can win it all.  With all that put in place, you really have to think that after losing the title twice over the course of four seasons; Carl Edwards has learned the lessons to win the title in Sprint Cup.

“I feel a little more excited, I feel more confidence,” Edwards said on during Preseason Thunder testing. “I didn’t know if that’s how I’d feel. I didn’t know if it would be something that would feel nagging, or something like that. I feel good, excited to go racing. What happened last year was one of the greatest battles I’ve ever been in [in] in a race car, and I feel like I learned a lot. … I’ve accepted the fact that we didn’t win it, but I’m also really excited about the way that we could potentially run this year. So I feel more confident than I’ve felt, ever. Kind of more calm, you know? Because I know we can do it.”

Osborne himself had to accept the fact that there could have been somethings he did differently and possibly could have changed the outcome of a few races.  However, he, himself has learned from last season and put it behind him as a crew chief.

I reached it pretty quick,” he said. “We show up to the race track every weekend with the intention of doing the best we possibly can. Regardless of the outcome, myself and Carl and everyone on this program shows up and does absolutely the best they can. When the weekend’s over, I don’t look back, and I don’t ask my guys to look back. I know Carl doesn’t look back and say, ‘Man, we didn’t do a good enough job here, we didn’t do a good enough job there.’ We do highlight the things we could have done differently, but we understand the particular situations don’t necessarily go the way you want them to go. … There were a lot of opportunities that we didn’t get the absolute most out of, but that didn’t have anything to do with anyone not doing a good job or not doing the best they could.”

“I think it’s important to let it all go,” he said. “But I am human, too. There are times you look back and say, one more point here would have made a huge difference. And you look at not only things that our program did, but you also look at things other programs did to change how the points wound up. There are a lot of things that we look at. But that was last year. We worry about this year now.”

For the most part, a majority of the team that helped put them into championship contention last season is still there this season, including long-time car chief Pierre Kuettel, who will be working his 13th season with Roush Fenway Racing, half of the 25 year span that the organization has been in NASCAR.  Building a relationship between the three main members of the crew have helped make this season a strong contender for the title once again in 2012.  Last season was an odd and rare deal where the guy that has the best average finish doesn’t win the series championship, and it came down to winning races, and both the driver and crew chief agree that there is nothing that they would change on how they ran last year.

“Truthfully, I think we ran a hell of a Chase,” Edwards said. “If we do that again this year, I challenge anyone to do what Tony did. I don’t know that that’s ever going to be possible again. No offense to anybody or anything, but if you said, you have to go win half the Chase races to win this championship, I’d say, man, I don’t know that anybody could do that. But they did. What I’m saying is, over the next years, if we can perform like we’re performing now, we’re going to be tough to beat.”

I look back and wonder myself, because winning five out of ten events is something that doesn’t happen but once in a blue moon as the saying goes.  Edwards was the strong contender from the time the green flag dropped last season in Daytona.  I think when you also look at the contention span since 2005, you will see there is a comparison between the 99 and 48, as the driver and crew chief have bonded together and made themself into championship contenders just as the Johnson/Knaus pair did.  In that span, the 48 team has a better average finishing number by two positions than the 99, Edwards has been getting better and better since 2007.  I don’t expect any fall down like the 11 team faced in 2

The No. 99 Fastenal Ford Fusion that Edwards will be racing during Speedweeks inside the shop (credit: Fastenal Racing Facebook)

Carl Edwards will be running in the Budweiser Shootout, Gatorade Duels and the Daytona 500 in his all new blue and white colors when racing season gets kicked off less than a month away when the series will get fired up for the Shootout.

Fastenal will be the sponsor for Edwards’ No. 99 Ford Fusion for the complete run of Speedweeks this season.  Edwards will be running the Fastenal colors in 18 total races this season, three of which will be the two non-points paying events in Daytona and the Sprint All-Star Challenge in May.

For the past two seasons, Edwards has had the blue, white and grey colors covering his NASCAR Nationwide Series Ford Mustang and with the help of Fastenal was able to get his car owner Jack Roush’s first NASCAR Nationwide Series car owners’ championship last season.

It was announced late last season that Fastenal had signed a multi-year deal to be the main sponsor for Carl Edwards after Aflac decided to give up the majority of their events for the future.

If you are interested to know what sponsor will be on the car for each event visit our schedule page and we have the majority of the events fille

I know that there are a lot of fans that are not Carl Edwards fans that are wondering why he can get four or five major companies from the United States to sign with him and the Roush Fenway Racing marketing crew can barely get one signed for Matt Kenseth.  It’s a simple answer – The Driver.

Edwards by far is the most marketable person in the sport.  There are a lot of fans that might disagree but put the winning equation together, he runs up front, speaks clearly, takes the time with the fans, and he is seen in more places than any other driver in the sport.  Next year it appears that Edwards will be showing a 4-5 sponsor system on his car with the likes of Fastenal, Kellogg’s Company, UPS, Aflac and possibly more if Subway returns to the car.  Here’s the facts……

When a company signs with a driver, they want someone that can advertise for them, that can get in front of the camera and support their product professionally and with respect.  The most popular driver in the sport is not the best for advertising and marketing, he’s not the best behind the camera and gets very nervous and agitated with interviewing and that hurts with advertising campaigns that sponsors put in place for drivers.  I have read a lot of remarks from fans commenting on NASCAR becoming nothing but a big marketing campaign for America’s companies, well it has to be to survive.

The days of one sponsor supporting one team the entire season is getting to slim down and they are going out just like single car operations are. Kellogg’s renewed their deal with Carl Edwards and added two extra races to their sponsorship for next season, and it is something that many were expecting when diecast were already being produced for next season with Frosted Flakes and Cheez It on the hood of the car for two races a piece.  Edwards is good because he do ads for four different style companies, he does it for an injury insurance company, a cereal/snack company, probably the top cereal producer in the United States, he will have UPS on his car next season, a delivery service, and then Fastenal which is a fastener/hardware chain.

Drivers have to be marketable to carry on such a load and keep these people coming back for more.  Fastenal was a company that not many people realized existed until they arrived into NASCAR.  They have expanded from being a part-time sponsor in Nationwide to growing into the role as the lead sponsor for Carl Edwards next season with a 17 race stint on the 99 car.   So when you put together the partnerships, its win-win, no question.

However, here’s the one thing that many fans do not understand with the racing market.  Team’s don’t decide who sponsors who, the sponsor plays the biggest part in where they can because they are forking out the cash to go on the race car.  And a good example for it is UPS, they were a full-season sponsor for David Ragan, however felt that their advertising would be better switching to a one race deal with Edwards because with Edwards, that one race would likely be one that sees the car up front.  Sponsors are clever when they sign with certain people and sometimes they make a bad decision, but question this to yourself, who would you rather have – a guy that wins races, competes for the title, is seen on a weekly basis in the top-5 competing for solid finishes, and came close to winning the title, or a guy that has won one event in 4 seasons, and hasn’t ever made the Chase?

UPS was happy with Ragan for how he handled himself behind the camera and doing their Expos.  However, they feel more comfortable with Edwards.

Besides a few on track incidents where Edwards has raised a few questions, and remarks, he’s been solid.  He’s exactly what a sponsor wants when they sign a driver.

Yeah, Yeah we all have heard the term thou shall not judge.  Well it is hard not to judge someone in NASCAR has been in the storyline for much of the season for negativity in the sport and not positivity.  Kurt Busch and Roger Penske Racing agreed to part ways with one another on Monday and it opened up a whole list of discussions.  Some fans are not understanding the decisions that Penske made in letting go of Busch, and even though it is said to be a mutual agreement I have a hard time believing that.  There was too much of a spark that came from statements after the incident in Homestead occurred.

Racing is a gigantic business.  It operates the same as most everyday businesses do, and you must have a supplier and backer to help keep things going in a large racing inviroment.  I have been following racing the early 80s, and seen the sport make a huge rise because of the help of a sponsor coming in, in the 1970s and helping it rise to its limits with Winston.  Now sponsors play an even bigger part in the race teams in how they are ran, and they do have a say in what the driver does while wearing their logos.  If a driver does something inside the car, or causes something that brings a notice of negative response to their company, there is a chance that the driver might be let go.  I believe M&M’s showed that when they took their name off of the race car of Kyle Busch, and then I believe Shell/Pennzoil didn’t like what happened with Kurt Busch and his foul language used against Jerry Punch at Homestead.

Questions are always asked on why a team can let a driver go for just taking someone out of a race, or a few words being said.  Most of the time there are clauses in contracts that leave openings for drivers, owners, and sponsors to have a say in what happens.  And if there is a breech in that clause of the contract, something can be done about it.  The first incident I recall where a driver was let go because of something was Jeff Green with Richard Childress Racing in 2003, after he and teammate Kevin Harvick had an incident where Green had a few choice words to say about Harvick, and Childress fired him.

There is no “speaking his mind” in this sport.  Wherever you are, whatever you say, someone hears and sees what you say and do while you are at a track.  And ask Brad Keselowski, NASCAR still can dictate what you say in the social media area as well.  NASCAR runs this big business, and there are major players in who decides what.  I think when you go back to the incident where Carl Edwards wrecked Brad Keselowski, his sponsor Scotts made a statement and said it would not happen again as long as they were on the car.  The fact is sponsors have a say to these teams more than anyone will ever really know because there are only a handful of people to see contracts when they are signed.

Kurt Busch represented mainly one major company – the Shell Oil Company.  It gets even harder when you are signed to represent four to five companies as Edwards is, with companies like Aflac, Subway, Kelloggs, Fastenal, and UPS, all are high dollar money companies that want to be represented in a well mannered way. 

Then there are car owners, the next major piece of the puzzle in decision making.  I listened to Busch today on Speed in a Phone Interview and he said his relationship with Penske kept him from having any fun.  Roger Penske is a tough customer to please, but that’s why he has had success in all forms of auto racing.  And when it is the second time that one of the most well respected owners in the business cuts you loose, there are major issues somewhere and it isn’t with the owners.  Jack Roush did it first in 2005, now Penske?  That says a lot there for Kurt Busch.

The fact is, there are drivers more deserving of a top ride than one of the drivers that can’t get along with any crew chief that he works with, cusses out the media, and has an argy spout every time something can’t go right.  Jack Roush has two young kids that are very well deserving of good rides in the future, they are young, hold their temper in check and have extraordinary talent behind the wheel.  If things go the way rumors are saying, another guy that raced for Jack Roush will get a second chance with Roger Penske and he has something Kurt Busch does not, a respectful manner, a good voice of support for his sponsors and his race team, and he’s a great role model, that would be David Ragan.  I think that there are a lot of fans that don’t understand how this business actually works, but they need to learn it. 

Racing has its setbacks, it’s highs and lows, but every driver needs to earn respect before it is given to them.  I think when you look at the two brothers from Las Vegas, there is one thing that is there, they demand it, but have not earned it.  And I said this to someone the other night, you can be one of the greatest race car drivers on the planet, but that doesn’t mean you are going to make it in this sport if you cannot handle yourself off of the track with a little bit of respect to fans, the media, and your peers.  This season both Kyle and Kurt Busch showed things that were uncalled for with the media, their teams and for fans that look up to them.  I will always say this, no matter who it is, the light doesn’t always overshadow the dark.  There is a lot of darkness within both of these drivers careers, and if it is cleared up, it will only go down hill. 

It’s just a little something that some of us call “RISKY BUSINESS.”

After finishing second in the title race, Carl Edwards’ crew chief and his team were rewarded with some off-season marks for their success.

Crew Chief Bob Osborne was named the DIRECTV Crew Chief of the Year after he helped Edwards score 1 win, 19 top-fives, and 26 top-tens and kept Edwards in the points lead for 24 of the 36 races this season.  Osborne was not at the banquet to accept the ward, however, Carl Edwards did it on his behalf. 

“Bob is like a brother to me and he’s probably the hardest-working guy in the business,” Edwards said.  “He’s actually back at the shop today preparing for 2012 so we can come back even stronger next year.”

The No. 99 Aflac Racing crew was able to pull off the Mechanix Wear Most Valuable Pit Crew award as well.  The team was also part of the effort this season on pit road as they helped keep Edwards up front during the season, as the team scored a top-ten finish in all but 12 events this season.  Pit crew coach Andy Ward accepted the award on behalf of the team consisting of: Kale Uphoff, front tire changer; Alan Troutman, front tire carrier; Dennis Killian, jackman; Dwayne Ogles, rear tire changer; Jody Fortson, rear tire carrier and Joe Karasinski, gasman.

“I want to thank Mechanix Wear and NASCAR for this award,” said Ward.  “I want to brag on these guys. This group has been a pleasure to work with. A lot of these guys are new and some won their fist race this year. I promised them we’d get to Vegas but we were one point short of staying for the banquet tomorrow.  We’re already looking forward to next year to come back and win this award again.”