Roush closes doors on Xfinity Series

Crash Reed lost his sponsor for his buy a ride, and the 60 car was infamous this year. it hurt that 60 car was so bad, they must have been training monkeys to set up that car. I think Jack and his partner Fenway are about thru with the racing business.
 
I don’t follow trucks or X and have some questions. Is there much money in either series and is sponsorship tough like in cup?
 
WOW, didn't see that coming. Be great to see that series replicate the old ASA series. Short tracks, Independent teams. Make it affordable. Avoid the spec crap .Ain't gonna happen.
 
Roush racing has been dying since about 2012. as SHR adds another car to the Xfinity series this year
Carl leaving for "the dark side" was the deathknell imo. They might physically be around as an actual race team for a while longer but they're a shell of their former selves at this point.

That #60 team was a total disaster and with Briscoe going to SHR, Cindric to Penske, and Reed's money gone there's not much reason to keep that thing afloat. Too bad Majeski never got a proper shot though.
 
Man, to know that the program Mark Martin and company with the likes Biffle, Edwards, Kenseth... This is truly sad and honestly Reed leaving with Lilly's out was the nail in the coffin.

Roush is turning more into Robert Yates Racing every year. I would not be surprised to see Roush focus truly on engines in the next five years or so.
 
So? That doesn't diminish the fact that an icon of the sport is lost in this series.
RFR were going downhill even when things were better than they are now. Much of it lays on them in their failure to evolve and adapt as a team IMO.

I also would not be surprised to see them just be an engine builder once Stenhouse's contract is up in a few years. Ford will continue to invest more in SHR and Penske, they are clearly the flagship teams there.
 
Roush racing has been dying since about 2012. as SHR adds another car to the Xfinity series this year
Since Carl left....it still is rough to see IMO. It boggles my mind to see where Roush is today, just 10 years ago Carl just got done battling JJ for the Championship.
 
RFR were going downhill even when things were better than they are now. Much of it lays on them in their failure to evolve and adapt as a team IMO.

I also would not be surprised to see them just be an engine builder once Stenhouse's contract is up in a few years. Ford will continue to invest more in SHR and Penske, they are clearly the flagship teams there.
Kenseth was talking about having a job after he raced at Roush, Looks like he took a look and bailed.
 
RFR were going downhill even when things were better than they are now. Much of it lays on them in their failure to evolve and adapt as a team IMO.

I also would not be surprised to see them just be an engine builder once Stenhouse's contract is up in a few years. Ford will continue to invest more in SHR and Penske, they are clearly the flagship teams there.
True, but losing them is still a huge deal.
 
Man, to know that the program Mark Martin and company with the likes Biffle, Edwards, Kenseth... This is truly sad and honestly Reed leaving with Lilly's out was the nail in the coffin.

Roush is turning more into Robert Yates Racing every year. I would not be surprised to see Roush focus truly on engines in the next five years or so.
I rooted against Yates and Roush, I was equally sad to see Yates wither away much like Roush is now. They were once the flagship team of Ford
 
I rooted against Yates and Roush, I was equally sad to see Yates wither away much like Roush is now. They were once the flagship team of Ford

I fondly remember a very young Davey Allison and Joey Knuckles taking the Yates/Havoline Thunderbird to the front. Winning two races as a rookie in 1987, and only running 22 of the 29 scheduled events. Also remember the Stroh Light Blue Thunderbirds with Mark Martin behind the wheel. Those guys were just tough. I hate to see Roush slowly go the same way as Yates, but time passes on.
 
I fondly remember a very young Davey Allison and Joey Knuckles taking the Yates/Havoline Thunderbird to the front. Winning two races as a rookie in 1987, and only running 22 of the 29 scheduled events. Also remember the Stroh Light Blue Thunderbirds with Mark Martin behind the wheel. Those guys were just tough. I hate to see Roush slowly go the same way as Yates, but time passes on.
I agree. It’s great hey SHR is adding a car in the series but it’s sad to see the team that had Mark Martin in the 60 Winn Dixie Ford die.
 
RFR were going downhill even when things were better than they are now. Much of it lays on them in their failure to evolve and adapt as a team IMO.

I also would not be surprised to see them just be an engine builder once Stenhouse's contract is up in a few years. Ford will continue to invest more in SHR and Penske, they are clearly the flagship teams there.

Roush is kinda a Shelby in a way, they make Roush Mustangs and sell a line of Roush hop up parts, I think you are right about the engine builder thing, they already are doing some of that. First thing I thought of when SHR signed 4 cars on with Ford was that Rouch's days were either numbered or Ford was going to prop up Rouch also. Didn't take long to figure it out.
 
WOW, didn't see that coming. Be great to see that series replicate the old ASA series. Short tracks, Independent teams. Make it affordable. Avoid the spec crap .Ain't gonna happen.

In it's last two decades, ASA was VERY spec, and it WORKED. They adopted common chassis center sections and tightly controlled bodies in 1992 and spec engines in 1998. The only things that killed ASA was losing their TV deal when TNN was sold and Rex Robbins selling out.
 
Crash Reed lost his sponsor for his buy a ride, and the 60 car was infamous this year. it hurt that 60 car was so bad, they must have been training monkeys to set up that car. I think Jack and his partner Fenway are about thru with the racing business.
Jack may decide to go alone in another form of racing.
His sale to Fenway is what killed his racing program.
 
In it's last two decades, ASA was VERY spec, and it WORKED. They adopted common chassis center sections and tightly controlled bodies in 1992 and spec engines in 1998. The only things that killed ASA was losing their TV deal when TNN was sold and Rex Robbins selling out.

It always seemed coincidental to me that IROC died along with ASA and both were spec series. That's just my take on it. If NASCAR wanted to buy another series, I would have rather them bought whatever is left of the ASA series, and had a touring short track series. There's a ton of venues that could possibly put on great shows at the local level. To me, that's where racing will get revitalized, the local level. Doesn't matter, ASA is long gone .
 
It always seemed coincidental to me that IROC died along with ASA and both were spec series. That's just my take on it. If NASCAR wanted to buy another series, I would have rather them bought whatever is left of the ASA series, and had a touring short track series. There's a ton of venues that could possibly put on great shows at the local level. To me, that's where racing will get revitalized, the local level. Doesn't matter, ASA is long gone .

I believe there were NUMUROUS reasons why IROC died. Because of schedule conflicts, it became harder to find dates that would allow non-NASCAR drivers to participate. Then you had drivers from certain series like Formula One that would NOT participate. Then you had star drivers who decided they no longer WANTED to participate. Then you have the fact that the more specialized drivers have become, you had fewer and fewer drivers from outside NASCAR that had ever driven a car of that type, and couldn't put on a very good show. So you ended up with race that looked like just another NASCAR race that was often held at dull venues. Finally, they lost manufacturer support and then sponsor support and that finally killed it. I think the lack of star participation was the biggest single nail in the coffin. Imagine an IROC with Kyle, Kevin, Martin and Chase, with Scott Dixon, Simon Pagenaud, Will Power and Josef Newgarden, Hamilton and Alonso and Jordan Taylor and Jan Magnussen in interesting cars on tracks like Watkins Glen and VIR or Mid-Ohio and say Darlington and Richmond. I think you could sell THAT.
 
I believe there were NUMUROUS reasons why IROC died. Because of schedule conflicts, it became harder to find dates that would allow non-NASCAR drivers to participate. Then you had drivers from certain series like Formula One that would NOT participate. Then you had star drivers who decided they no longer WANTED to participate. Then you have the fact that the more specialized drivers have become, you had fewer and fewer drivers from outside NASCAR that had ever driven a car of that type, and couldn't put on a very good show. So you ended up with race that looked like just another NASCAR race that was often held at dull venues. Finally, they lost manufacturer support and then sponsor support and that finally killed it. I think the lack of star participation was the biggest single nail in the coffin. Imagine an IROC with Kyle, Kevin, Martin and Chase, with Scott Dixon, Simon Pagenaud, Will Power and Josef Newgarden, Hamilton and Alonso and Jordan Taylor and Jan Magnussen in interesting cars on tracks like Watkins Glen and VIR or Mid-Ohio and say Darlington and Richmond. I think you could sell THAT.

It had became very stale. I may be mistaken, but I seem to recall NHRA drivers participating? Or, am I wrong? There is enough talent around now to make it interesting. But it ain't gonna happen.
 
Carl leaving for "the dark side" was the deathknell imo.

I agree. It is clear that Carl absolutely didn't want to go to JGR. He did it to whore up the company so that he could get his shot at a championship because it wasn't going to happen at Roush. Very sad.
 
In it's last two decades, ASA was VERY spec, and it WORKED. They adopted common chassis center sections and tightly controlled bodies in 1992 and spec engines in 1998. The only things that killed ASA was losing their TV deal when TNN was sold and Rex Robbins selling out.

How can you say that ASA worked and they lost their TV deal in the same post?
 
Jack may decide to go alone in another form of racing.
His sale to Fenway is what killed his racing program.
That didn't kill it, Jack fell behind in the egineering a leadership of the team. I think other teams found speed and handling, whereas his organization just fell behind. Fenway, if anything interjected more money into the equation improving Jack's chances at success.
 
I can’t say I’m sorry to see Roush fading away but that doesn’t mean I’m happy about it either. The guys that I feel bad for are Junie Donlavey, the Jackson Bros and the Stavola’s but that is for another thread
 
How can you say that ASA worked and they lost their TV deal in the same post?

They lost their TV deal because the TNN network was sold and rebranded, and the new network had no interest in televising the racing series. They tried to cobble a TV deal together, but it didn't really go anywhere. Add into this that this was about the time that the founding Robbins family sold the series and also when title sponsor AC Delco pulled out when GM began having financial troubles. When I say it worked, the on track product was quite good, there were full fields of cars, and the crowds seemed pretty decent, considering that during this time frame (late 90's early 2000's) the economy had started to sour and NASCAR was still going strong enough to suck all of the air out of the room. ASA ultimately died for several reasons, but I don't think for one second that the cars they used or the product they put on the track was responsible for the demise. The final season (2004) featured nine different winners in fourteen events and the last two events ever held had 38 and 37 cars. The ONLY mistake I see that was made from a technical standpoint was that the Ford teams should have had the choice of an equal Ford spec motor to use instead of ALL cars having to use the spec Lingenfelter GM LS V8.
 
Since people don't buy cars these days, turn the Xfinity series into racing SUVs.
That just look like a bunch of Dodge Magnums
 
Roushe's downfall saddens me. I watched him in the old IMSA and Trans Am series religiously. I was thrilled when he entered NASCAR with Mar Martin. But alas all good things must come to an end. I will mourn the day Roush leaves NASCAR.
 
You guys remember the Gapp and Roush NHRA Pro Stock efforts? If i'm not mistaken, they were the builders of "The Tijuana Taxi". It was a four door Maverick Pro Stock car. Seems Jack figured out some sort of a loophole for an advantage using the four door body. I can't remember, I've slept a lot since then. Jack was quite an innovator.
 
Imagine an IROC with Kyle, Kevin, Martin and Chase, with Scott Dixon, Simon Pagenaud, Will Power and Josef Newgarden, Hamilton and Alonso and Jordan Taylor and Jan Magnussen in interesting cars on tracks like Watkins Glen and VIR or Mid-Ohio and say Darlington and Richmond. I think you could sell THAT.

Take my money!!!
I loved the series.
 
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