ADVERTISING Pontiac's decision will hurt little guys

As brand indentity went by the wayside, so did GM's advertising dollars.
By LEE SPENCER
THE SPORTING NEWS
The days of Pontiac Excitement in NASCAR are over. It's no surprise General Motors is pulling its Pontiac brand from NASCAR racing.
In fact, the move might have come sooner if not for GM's need to maintain Pontiac's presence in NASCAR long enough to coincide with the launch of the redesigned 2003 Grand Prix.
Pontiac always has been promoted as the sporty, high-performance line in the GM family, and NASCAR was the perfect vehicle for product placement until brand identity went by the wayside.
When NASCAR began floating the idea of common templates for all models, GM openly expressed its dismay. Take away the grill and the tail, and the Grand Prix is all but identical to a 3-year-old Ford Taurus.
Now that the differences between makes are barely distinguishable, it doesn't make sense for GM to throw $8 million to $10 million a year into marketing the Pontiac brand in NASCAR.
Top dog at GM
Chevrolet long has been the top dog at General Motors. Considering that Chevrolet has won 27 manufacturers championships, it's understandable where GM's loyalty lies. Yes, Ricky Craven delivered one of the most exhilarating finishes stock car racing ever witnessed when his Pontiac edged Kurt Busch's Ford in March at Darlington. But that was the only win of the season for Pontiac, and there have been only four other top five finishes.
Realistically, Pontiac Excitement vanished when Joe Gibbs Racing abandoned the manufacturer at the end of the 2002 season. The defection of JGR, which won Winston Cup titles for Pontiac in 2000 and 2002, to Chevrolet dashed any hopes Pontiac had at a future title. It might seem that Gibbs was tipped off about GM's decision long before word reached the remaining Pontiac teams, but that was not the case. The existing Pontiac teams are likely to be retained by Chevrolet, but those teams will be very small fish in a very large pond.
Bottom feeders
Pontiac had to enlist a coterie of bottom feeders just to have five squads:
UThe addition of Morgan-McClure Motorsports, which hasn't won since 1998, hardly was a positive sign. It's difficult for a manufacturer to support a team when the team isn't certain who will drive the car each week.
UIn a combined 377 starts, the allied MBV and MB2 teams have just one victory. Joe Nemechek brings cachet to the No. 01 MB2 team. Replacing Johnny Benson in the No. 10 MB2 with rookie Scott Riggs is a gamble, but it should pay off.
ULike the MB crews, Haas CNC Racing has ties to Hendrick Motorsports, which runs Chevrolets, and that's a plus. However, crew chief Tony Furr inherited a mess at the No. 0 team and has plenty of work to do. His saving grace is the hiring of Ward Burton.
Switched manufacturers
UCal Wells' PPI Motorsports, which switched manufacturers and started a new engine program before the season, started strong with Craven's victory, but the switch placed a strain on the team. This organization will continue to grow but needs to reduce engine failures. If PPI can add a second team, it will have additional information and testing.
In this economy, Pontiac, like other manufacturers, has to do what is necessary to survive. But if Pontiac knew this decision was coming the teams should have been warned before new cars were being built for 2004.
The least GM can do is continue the financial support of these teams throughout the transition.