Nine NASCAR Sprint Cup Teams form business association called “Race Team Alliance”

On Monday, a thought-provoking announcement was made when nine multi-car Sprint Cup Series teams announced that they have formed a collaborative business association called the Race Team Alliance (RTA). 

The press release from the RTA states that their purpose is “to create an open forum for the teams to explore areas of common interest and to work collaboratively on initiatives to help preserve, promote, and grow the sport of stock car racing”. This group of nine plans plans to explore ways to make the business aspect of NASCAR better for the long-term health of the sport.

The following teams are part of the RTA: Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, Michael Waltrip Racing, Richard Childress Racing, Richard Petty Motorsports, Roush Fenway Racing, Stewart-Haas Racing and Team Penske. The organization has stated that they intend to open up membership to all full time NSCS teams.

Rob Kauffman, co-owner of Michael Waltrip Racing, has been elected the first chair of the RTA.

“With the encouragement of NASCAR and the manufacturers, the teams have met in various forms and forums over the years to explore areas of common interest. This simply formalizes what was an informal group.” said Kauffman. “The key word is ‘Collaboration’. We all have vested interests in the success and popularity of stock car racing. By working together and speaking with a single voice, it should be a simpler and smoother process to work with current and potential groups involved with the sport. Whether it be looking for industry-wide travel partners or collaborating on technical issues – the idea is to work together to increase revenue, spend more efficiently, and deliver more value to our partners.”

Brett Jewkes, NASCAR Vice President and Chief Communications Officer, released a statement saying that NASCAR is aware of the RTA but hasn’t heard a lot of specifics about it.

“It is apparently still in development and we’re still learning about the details so it would be inappropriate to comment right now,” Jewkes added. “NASCAR’s mission, as it has always been, is to create a fair playing field where anyone can come and compete. Our job is to support and strengthen all of the teams, large and small, across all of our series and we’ll continue to do that. NASCAR is a unique community with hundreds of stakeholders. They all have a voice and always will.”

About the Author

Ashley McCubbin

Joining OnPitRoad.com mid-2013 season, Ashley McCubbin is now the Managing Editor and contributes to each racing division as needed. Since studying journalism at the University of Guelph-Humber, Ashley has published articles on a couple of different websites, while serving as a public relations representative for different short track teams. Born in North York, Ontario, Ashley currently lives in Bradford, Ontario and spends her weekend at the local short tracks in the area. She has spent her entire life at the short track level, falling in love with the sport at the age of five. Beyond her love of short track racing, she also has grown an interest for both NASCAR and the IndyCar Racing Series. She also enjoys taking photos and working on websites, while playing a couple rounds of Candy Crush afterwards.

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