The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards Ceremony at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City is a required appearance for the Champion. (Photo: Getty Images)
So you want to be a NASCAR driver? The cost for a license will be $2,420. And if you want to race in the Nationwide or Truck series as well, it will be an extra $110.
How about being a NASCAR owner? It will cost you $2,970.
Those are the application fees for the 2009 season, according to documents filed as part of Jeremy Mayfield’s lawsuit against NASCAR over his indefinite suspension for alleged violations of the NASCAR substance-abuse policy.
What does all this have to do with alleged drug use? Not much, but it’s the contract that the driver signs with NASCAR to be part of the sport. NASCAR submitted this agreement as part of its defense, showing that Mayfield agreed to abide by the NASCAR rule book and the substance-abuse policy.
The documents appear to offer a number of specific details about the sport’s operation that haven’t previously been available.
The agreement between NASCAR and its drivers and NASCAR and its owners is the basis for points fund distribution as well as potential sponsor conflict issues. A team owner must apply for a separate license for each car (in other words, Rick Hendrick must apply separately for all four of his Cup cars).
There are exclusivity clauses for major sponsors and suppliers Sprint, Goodyear and Sunoco that forbid their competitors from being a Sprint Cup sponsor. These sections are much more detailed than in 2007 when NASCAR was sued by AT&T over whether AT&T could be on the Sprint Cup car of Richard Childress.
As part of the agreement, drivers and car owners can’t be used to promote Sprint, Goodyear and Sunoco competitors if the promotion includes a NASCAR-style racing vehicle. Teams agree to make their best effort to use Sprint. If a fuel company is using a non-fuel component as their main sponsorship (i.e., Pennzoil-Shell), the non-fuel component must be at least two-thirds of the car and uniform design; the fuel component no more than one-third. The Goodyear clause allows an interesting exception: It does not require hauler tires be Goodyears nor pit-road carts to use Goodyear tires.
