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NASCAR merger has Mooresville on edge
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Published: November 16, 2008
Officials in Race City USA say the merger between Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Concord-based Ganassi Racing is a sign of the tough economic times, and the town and its business community are prepared to assist the approximately 100 DEI workers who will lose their jobs.
Mayor Bill Thunberg said Friday that DEI and Ganassi "have to do whatever they have to do to be able to survive in a challenging economy."
Local officials, he said, "are concerned about the folks that are going to be losing their jobs."
On Wednesday, Ganassi released a statement announcing details of the merger. The new four-car team will be called Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates and will feature drivers Martin Truex Jr., Juan Pablo Montoya and Aric Almirola. The team, said Ganassi, will announce its fourth driver soon.
The merger, said owner Chip Ganassi, is a "win-win" for both organizations.
"In this ultra-competitive era of NASCAR, it is necessary to build and sustain the strongest team possible and our combining with the people and equipment at Dale Earnhardt Inc. will help create a strong four-car program for years to come," he said.
Added Teresa Earnhardt: "Having a partner like Chip who is heavily involved on the competition side of the business is an ideal situation for DEI. I think this is a case where we are stronger together than we are apart."
In a Thursday press conference, Ganassi said employees at the Concord race headquarters will not lose their jobs. More details about the new team, he said, will be announced at a future date.
Although the loss of about 100 DEI jobs will be difficult to cope with, Mooresville-South Iredell Chamber of Commerce President Karen Shore said Friday that the merger itself is not entirely a surprise.
"I think that we've all been aware that come end of the season for the motorsports industry that there are going to be some changes made, decisions made," she said. "They are facing the same thing that the rest of us are facing."
To deal with the economic downturn, NASCAR teams are "really looking internally and streamlining" their day-to-day operations and finances, Shore said.
"It's just part of what the times are right now for any of our businesses," she said.
Mooresville-South Iredell Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Russell Rogerson said Friday that DEI is "a very solid company, but there is an industry trend where loss of sponsorships are putting a hardship on them. This economy as it exists today makes it very difficult."
Mooresville officials are trying to assure workers that the Mooresville community will step forward to help them find the assistance they need.
Thunberg said he has communicated with Concord Mayor Scott Padgett and has "been in touch with DEI and offered our assistance in any way we can."
Shore said Mooresville's business community is "ready to support, embrace, work with these displaced workers in any way that we can to help find other positions for them."
Currently, she said, officials are looking at employee-assistance programs and credit counseling that can be made available to DEI employees.
"We're talking about people and families that are impacted by this," she said. "What it means when you bring it back to the community standpoint is we need to have those resources ready to offer."
Rogerson said Friday that officials are "very concerned about the motorsports industry and how we might help them work through this downturn. We pledge to support DEI and those workers impacted as this moves forward."
Despite the merger, Shore said there are a number of good economic signs still present in Mooresville. "We're opening new businesses every day, which is a good sign that things are going to be OK," she said.
So far, it is unclear what will happen to DEI's current headquarters, showroom, retail store, shop and tourist attraction on Mooresville's Highway 3.
Concord's mayor told the Independent Tribune Thursday that he was "confident" that the newly formed team would set up shop at Ganassi headquarters, located near Concord Regional Airport.
Thunberg said, however, that he would reserve judgment on the fate of DEI headquarters.
"We don't know what's going to happen with (the) facilities," he said. "But we'll work with them to try and work through this process so that it has as few negative effects as possible."
Mike Mulhern of the Winston-Salem Journal and Eric Deines of the Independent Tribune contributed to this article.
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