Chip Ganassi Racing announced today they are shutting down the #40 team of Dario Franchetti due to sponsorship issues. I have to say this was a little surprising. I mean he has only been in the car this season and he didn’t even get a chance to run all the races. Franchetti missed 5 races due to an ankle injury plus he has failed to qualify for 2 races as well. The #40 is currently sitting 40th in owner points. CGR is committed to developing his Nationwide Series program for Franchetti.

But I can understand why CGR did what they felt they had to do. Running a race team isn’t cheap these days. I can also understand it from a sponsor’s side as well. A sponsor pays quite a bit of moolah to invest in a race team and expect to see their driver in victory lane or at least competing for wins every week. I am sure they don’t want to see their driver on camera for another spin or crash. You get coverage, but it’s the coverage they probably want to see. Is this going to be something the smaller teams will have to do in order to survive in NASCAR? Only time will tell.

One last thing…check this picture out of Tony and Matt…

For one this isn’t a very good picture of either driver.  The caption under the picture over at ESPN.com is “Neither former champion, Stewart or Kenseth, is safely in the Chase”, however I think maybe there should have been another, more appropriate caption. My hubby, Postman, thought it looked someone had just walked by both Tony and Tony and well, whiffed one.  I mean look at both of them.  They have that look.  I just thought it was a funny observation that I had to share.