Photo by Charlie Leffler
Jeff Burton at last RIR last May.

The economy of racing
By Charlie Leffler


May 02, 2008

Jeff Burton comments on economy's affect on racing

It has been 16 years since Richmond International Raceway officials were unable to announce an advance sell-out of races prior to NASCAR weekends. During Friday morning’s press conference at RIR, NASCAR points leader and South Boston, Virginia native Jeff Burton fielded questions on the fact that for the first time in nearly two decades there could be empty seats come race time on Saturday night.

Burton pointed out that the lack of ticket sales is indicative of the present economy. “I just think there’s no question that our economy is tough right now,” Burton said. “Fuel prices are way up, there’s a lot of things going on that make it a lot harder on the people who are the heart and soul of our sport, which is average, everyday, middle class, that is what our sport has always been supported by. When they’re feeling it and they’re struggling with their finances then we feel it too.”

But Burton said his greater concern was not with NASCAR itself but with the livelihood of the fans, who support the races. “I’m not concerned about the health of our sport,” he said. “(But) think about it, if they can’t buy tickets there’s a lot of other things they can’t do as well.”

However, Burton is certain that the situation will eventually right itself. “Our country goes through ups and downs and we’re in a financial down right now,” he said. “It will come back and when it comes back the fans will come back.”

The economy’s impact goes far beyond the seats in the grandstands and stretches to the track itself. One reporter pointed out that because of financial situations, some Nationwide cars enter races knowing they are incapable of finishing the event.
Burton concurred with the assessment, saying the faltering economy has limited the number and quality of cars that are competing in the Nationwide and Truck Series races because both appealed to teams with lesser budgets.

“If the economy doesn’t turn around quickly that problem will only get worse,” Burton said. “We have to have sponsorship to make these things work. So, the Nationwide Series, and the Cup Series and the Truck Series are very much economy driven.

“The sports can’t control the economy,” Burton continued. “When the economy’s down we’re going to see less car count and when we do see a full car count in the lower series we’re going to see the quality of cars at a larger variance than we normally would. That’s not the best thing for us for sure but I believe it’s short-lived.”

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