Michael Waltrip Racing in trouble?

UPDATE #2 First, the information that our post was based on was not made up, fabricated, or some sort of wild speculation. Employees were let go, and given the reason we specified. And it wasn’t just one employee. Beyond that, the fact remains that both NAPA and UPS have sponsorship contracts that end after this season and UPS has been openly shopping for another team. All three Cup Series teams are lower then 28th in the points, with Waltrip’s #55 team falling out of the top 35 last Sunday at Pocono. In the current climate of NASCAR, sponsorship has been very difficult to come by, with some very successful teams having limited or no sponsorship. Knowing that both companies may be looking, its not a stretch to think that a lot of Cup Series owners have made phone calls inquiring. And, with good teams being available, why wouldn’t UPS and NAPA look elsewhere? The return on investment could be a lot better with another team.

Second, at no point in the post did we say that Michael Waltrip Racing was closing its doors. Financial trouble does not mean bankrupt or dead. We just stated that they are in trouble. With that said though, if MWR can’t secure sponsorship for its three Cup teams and Nationwide Series program for 2009 and beyond, teams will be shut down. That is a fact of racing that nobody can dispute.

In terms of Michael Waltrip’s partners and Toyota, I’d like to remind people that although racing is a sport, at the end of the day its a business. It doesn’t matter how much money and resources Toyota, Robert Kauffman, or Cal Wells have. If the team doesn’t have sponsorship and isn’t at least breaking even, they won’t continue to back it. Kauffman and Toyota didn’t get to where they are today by making bad investment decisions. They will not continue to sink money into the team just because its a NASCAR team with a famous name on the front door. TheNascarInsiders

06/10/08 This rumor is downgraded to 'false' today. There is a rumor that reports MWR has fallen on tough times and may go away. Is that true? Waltrip says, "I fancy myself as being a friend to one of the Web sites that is reporting that. But I have to say that the rumor is probably one of the most ridiculous things I have read on the internet. We are probably on as good of footing financially as anyone in the garage area. We are focused on the future. When you are a new team, a lot of times there is turnover. There is reorganization. That is what is going on at MWR and will continue to happen until we hit our stride. We are not in any peril as being reported. We are very into what we are doing and what we need to do to be successful." MWR PR

06/09/08 Hearing that there might be trouble over at Michael Waltrip Racing. It seems that they are laying people off, telling them that it is because of financial issues. The team currently fields three Sprint Cup cars, the #00, the #44 and the #88, and one Nationwide Series car, the #99. This year Waltrip brought on a partner, Robert Kauffman, after suffering huge losses on renovations for his Cornelius, NC race shop and a bad 2007 season. Primary sponsor UPS is also pulling out of the team at the end of this season. Jayski's