For thousands of motor racing fans, including me, today is a very special day. The running of the Daytona 500 is Super Bowl and World Cup and World Series and Stanley Cup and Masters all in one spectacular event.
But in these times of economic turmoil, which has hit the auto industry particularly hard, would it be as big a deal as in the past? From the look of things today, you bet.
The event was sold out. Over 200,000 race fans were on hand to see NASCAR’s biggest event. Even though rain stopped the race with about 50 laps to go, veteran race car driver Matt Kenseth sobbed over winning this premier event. It’s ironic; a guy like Kenseth who can race a car three-wide on a high-banked oval at 190 miles per hour inches from the next cars, breaks down and weeps over winning this prestigious event.
This is the Daytona 500. It’s Ben-Hur versus Messala with 600 horses powering their chariots.
Detroit’s Big Three, GM, Ford, and Chrysler, have all cut their marketing budgets, but they only trimmed their NASCAR expenditures. I’ve read estimates from auto analysts that GM cut its spending on NASCAR from a high of approximately $125 million a year to about $85 million. Ford is reported to have cut its NASCAR spending by approximately 35 percent. The auto companies usually won’t disclose the information. But there is no way they will abandon NASCAR.
Savvy auto marketers know that stock car racing remains a great way to attract buyers. It’s simple enough to see why NASCAR and the auto makers are so dependent on each other. A winning Chevy or Ford or Dodge or Toyota brings buyers into the showroom. To withdraw from this scene might surely mean loss of market share.
NASCAR-related expenditures for advertising and promotion pay big dividends for a wide variety of products, not only autos. NASCAR fans are traditionally fiercely brand loyal to products that support NASCAR racing. Just read the drivers’ racing suits and the decals on their cars. You’ll see all types of products that marketers know have hugely loyal followers because they support their beloved racing.
The Daytona 500 kicks off the NASCAR racing season. The show of loyalty and enthusiasm over today’s race was startling given the economic gloom and doom that surrounds us. Perhaps people need the race to forget about the hard times for a while. Or perhaps, as with a hint of spring, there is some optimism creeping in.
Hi Les,
Watching the Daytona 500, I felt the same way I do when at or driving by Wal-Mart — don’t these people know that we are in a recession/depression? I went to Wal-Mart on Saturday and the place was a zoo. One couldn’t find a parking space within half a mile of the store.
Your assessment of the furor surrounding Daytona is spot on. I noticed, however, that many of the drivers themselves and teams changed drastically from last year. I think the result will be a widening gap between the elite teams and the rest of the pack (even greater than in the past). The best teams have the resources to dominate the sport at the expense of the teams that don’t have deep pockets.
Interestingly, while all the other major sports have used salary caps to introduce parity into the system, Nascar is pushing in the opposite direction. Perhaps this is simply playing to fans’ demands. Dale Jr., for example, is once again the top fan-favorite, despite several disappointing seasons of not living up to championship-level expectations.
I share your hope that the new Nascar season and excitement at Daytona is a glimmer of hope for the economy.
Your pal,
Bob
This is great, Bob, thanks. You are correct in the disparity among teams. Take Jeremy Mayfield, who scraped together a used car and some out-of-work crew members, and without any payday, competed Sunday. It reminds of the early days of NASCAR. Compare that effort to Hendricks or Rouse, and you see quite a gap.
By the way, the Wal-Marts up here are doing record business. People seem to be hunting value. Consumers still have needs, and outfits like Wal-Mart meet them.