The Race Team Alliance – an organization that bands together each of the charter-holding operations in the NASCAR Cup Series – is exploring the possibility of holding its own exhibition events, per Adam Sten of Sports Business Journal (SBJ).
Tuesday’s report from SBJ articulates that the Race Team Alliance will be deepening its relationship with Wasserman Media Group – a sports marketing agency – in order to explore the potential for exhibition events, independent from the NASCAR sanction.
.@RaceTeamAllianc is deepening its relationship with @Wasserman to have the agency look into the possibility of holding RTA exhibition races, a big develoment that suggests NASCAR's best teams are exploring organizing their own events in the offseason.
🗞:https://t.co/Y0WgjXRCZq pic.twitter.com/ePJtQTrmGR
— Adam Stern (@A_S12) November 30, 2022
Will Pleasants, Managing Director of U.S., confirmed to SBJ that the agency has “been hired to explore exhibition race opportunities, both domestically and internationally, via a (request-for-information proposal) — very exploratory.”
RELATED: Full Report from Sports Business Journal’s Adam Stern
The implications of the RTA’s exploratory actions are unclear at this time, but the move comes amidst a long-standing debate between the sanctioning body and the Race Team Alliance about the terms of the sanctioning body’s next media rights deal, which will begin in 2025
According to the report, NASCAR Cup Series teams are interested in potentially exploring this avenue because they’re struggling to turn a profit with the current business model in NASCAR, thus forcing them to investigate other sources of revenue.
However, there are various rules that teams must abide by in doing so, as part of the charter agreement with NASCAR, which includes not creating a competing racing series. That agreement is set to expire after the 2024 season.
Provided the teams compete in non-NASCAR race cars, and branded apparel, it appears that they believe there is some legal standing for them to hold various exhibition events, which the report says could start as early as the 2023 off-season.
