When the JCR3 Racomg team abruptly closed its doors, Closes Doors, USAR Pro Cup champ Clay Rogers was left without a ride for the 2010 season.
Jeff Craig, son of team owner Jimmy Craig said it was a purely financial decision. “I know he (Jimmy) had been wanting to get out of it for a while. This is all a family-run business and a family-run race team, but the fun’s not there anymore. Not when you’re racing when you can’t pay your bills when you win.”
That's indicative of a potentially bigger problem with smaller touring series throughout the country. Without a big dollar sponsor backing the series, promoters are forced to cut purses. When purses are cut teams like JCR3 cannot afford to race. It becomes a cash flow drain and for the Craigs that drain was going to be too much. But it's not just a ProCup situation, the struggle is played out across the land every year.
The best defense for an individual race team to find their own financial backing and work hard to keep it in place.