Co-sponsors solution to cash crunch?

It could ultimately become a new trend in NASCAR.
ROCKINGHAM, N.C. (AP) -- Andy Petree went to Victory Lane twice last year, nothing short of a miracle for a car owner who has mastered how to run a team on a shoestring budget.
One of those wins came at North Carolina Speedway, where Joe Nemechek drove Petree's No. 33 Chevrolet to a win in the Pop Secret 400. The car can't defend its victory on Sunday -- it no longer exists, a victim of sponsorship woes.
And if money doesn't soon materialize, Petree's other car, the No. 55 driven by Bobby Hamilton, could also be in deep trouble.
"It's been a very frustrating year, especially since we were coming off our most successful year," Petree said. "We won two races with two cars operating on a budget that was less than what some teams spend on one car. But we used what money we had to run an efficient program.
Making it work
"I truly believe if we just could have maintained sponsorship levels, we'd be a contender to win every week."
So Petree has launched a sponsor search that could ultimately become a new trend in NASCAR. Desperate to keep the No. 55 on the track -- and ever hopeful the No. 33 can come back -- he's looking at every way possible to scrape together the necessary dollars.
Square D, an electrical distribution company that sponsors the No. 55, has told Petree it can't afford the $8 million he needs to run a full Winston Cup schedule. But the company still wants to be involved, and Petree is looking for co-sponsors to help pick up the tab.
"Square D can do about a third of that, maybe I can stretch them to do a half," Petree said. "So my goal is to find some other companies who want to get into the sport, but also can't afford to do a full sponsorship deal, and bring them in on a smaller price tag."
That's almost unheard of in NASCAR, where some sponsors pay upward of $16 million a year to splash their product on the hood of a car for 36 weekends a year.
But Petree has never required that kind of money to function, finding ways to cut corners and stretch every dollar while still being competitive.
He boasts that he ran two teams last year on a budget under $16 million -- which he claims Pfizer, the parent company of Viagra, spends to sponsor Mark Martin -- and won a race with each car. Martin went winless last season in the No. 6 Ford.
Share the exposure
The basis behind Petree's new plan is to bring at least one other company on to the No. 55, and find a way to give the sponsor the most value. For example, Square D can be the primary paint scheme and host the hospitality tents at races that fit its market, while another company can hit the cities that it wants.
It's a trend that could become popular -- the Busch car driven by Kerry Earnhardt already does that with various sponsors and Petty Enterprises is looking into the same thing for the No. 44 Dodge that open-wheel star Christian Fittipaldi will pilot next season.
Because Fittipaldi will make his stock-car debut by racing in Winston Cup, Busch and ARCA next season, the Pettys are open to allowing various companies to sponsor the car based on series, or markets, to meet the estimated $10 million-$15 million they need for the program.
"There are sponsors out there who have $2 million or $3 million to spend on a program and just can't afford to do anymore," said CEO Kyle Petty. "This is a way to open doors for those companies to come into the sport."
The search has Bill Scott, head of Petty Marketing, working overtime in finding ways to sell the team to potential investors. At issue is finding new and inventive ways to give the sponsor the most for its money.
The Pettys are at an advantage -- they're a household name in racing and can offer a lot to sponsors. "We have a brand name that we've built over 50 years in motorsports," Petty said.
Returns important
Companies who sign on with the family are often rewarded with employee rides at the Richard Petty Driving Experience, and they host weekend sponsor conferences in which their investors get together to brainstorm how they can work together to better benefit themselves.
"The best thing we can do for ourselves is make sure whoever invests in us sells a lot of its product because of us," Scott said. "That's the way it has to be, because the days of making one person in a company like you and be happy with you are over.
"You aren't going to keep a sponsor because the CEO likes you. They've got to see a return on their investment."
NASCAR is also doing its part to help with a New York-based marketing office that is actively trying to match potential sponsors with needy teams. And the sanctioning body is looking for ways to reduce the rising costs of the sport so that car owners don't need close to $20 million a year to field a competitive team.
"It's been tough operating year-to-year, but the economy has made it that way and it costs so much to run a team," Petree said. "But we feel like we've got a really successful business model and a really good product, we just need the partners to get us to a level where we can compete."