GM Pulls Plug on Pontiac's NASCAR Involvement

I'm curious if anyone else on this board is disappointed by this news. I was really thinking that eventually the GTO would possibly become Pontiac's racing bodystyle. A company that touts itself as the excitement/performance division HAS to be seriously involved in racing. Where will they end up other then NHRA which has very limited exposure on TV. Will they keep the Pace car program in Winston/Nextel Cup that they've ran for years?
I'm very dissappointed by this news being a lifelong Pontiac supporter and NASCAR Fan. Pontiac was truly the underdog on the track with the fewest teams but still managed to win the Winston Cup championships in 2000(Bobby Labonte) and 2002(Tony Stewart) GM spent the resources to legalize the new 2004 Grand Prix for competition this year so I thought the marque was safe for awhile but I guess not. At least they won a race this year with Ricky Craven's Tide Pontiac in the best finish of the year in the spring Darlington race.
In true Pontiac racing spirit, the only full time campaigned Grand Prix in the Busch Series this year with driver David Green leads the point standings with 3 races to go. Should he go on to win the last Pontiac Championship in NASCAR it will be an amazing upset. I guess if you must leave the sport, you may as well go out on top!

Welcome to the forum tripowergto!

I always wondered why the Joe Gibbs Nascar team (Bobby LaBonte, Tony Stewart) would change to Chevrolets after wining two championships with Pontiacs. Maybe Mr. Gibbs didn't make the mistake I thought he did! Is it possible he knew of this in advance? Personally I'm a little dissipointed also. :( I like to see Pontiac get all the racing PR it can.

Suprfun

Thanks for the welcome Suprfun. I was one of the first to register on the original version of this site and didn't realize I needed to reregister until recently.

I too wonder if Joe Gibbs knew Pontiac was getting the eventual axe, especially since he developed the 04 GP NASCAR body, then switched last minute.

Where will Pontiac put their racing resources now?? Go figure, we have the GTO almost here and the Solstice on the way and no high-profile racing program. I don't get it!!

The Pontiac stockcar was the most recognizeable of all the makes on the track(gotta love that split grill!) and it will certainly be missed by more than a few fans. Maybe GM felt they needed to combine all their resources to Chevy since NASCAR is letting Toyota join the trucks next year(and Nextel Cup eventually) Toyota is investing a rediculous amount of money to be competitive. I can't help getting a smile though knowing Toyota is spending 10's of millions to develop(eh gads!!) a PUSHROD V-8!! :woot:

First off welcome to the board! :D

I admit I am not a NASCAR fan. Although I do see that Pontiac pulling out would hurt the diehard Pontiac NASCAR fans. So as for myself I don't really care or mind at all. But I do see your disappointment.

My whole angle on the thing is that a Pontiac Winston Cup car has about as much in common with an actual Grand Prix as does my son's Radio Flyer wagon. Nothing. If the manufacturers would go back to how it was done in the 50's and 60's when it was "stock" car racing I might be able to get into it.

Now I'm not insulting NASCAR fans here. Please understand that I'm just not into it as the way it works now. Now if it would go back to the old days of Race on Sunday sell on Monday of the 50's and 60's then I might be tempted to watch and become a fan.

OK I better not say anymore or I'll get a tongue lashing from the NASCAR crew. ;)

To each their own. :D

like NASCAR or not, Pontiac is backing out of a high profile venue. I just don't get it (not the first time)

I'm becoming more and more jaded with the WWE-Nascar racing. There is so little difference between the cars it's all about luck. Given that the GTO is coming out to be the flagship performance car, I'm hoping that the comment about concentrating on other racing venues means GT / endurance racing and maybe drag racing. I think that's where the strengths of the GTO will be anyway, and given win on sunday, sell on monday - wouldn't you be better racing to the strenghts of your cars?
That's my hope anyway.

Yeah it does really bother me that Pontiac pulled out of Nascar now. I didn't know that the busch leader was in a pontiac, guess I'm going to watch the final 3 busch races this year and cheer on that poncho all the way until he wins the championship this year. Would be a great way to go out :) I think that since pontiac is supposidly looking to get involved in other racing programs, I think that since they have the new GTO about to come out, that they should have a couple of factory sponsored teams in the Speedvision World Challenge circuit and the like. I think it would be great to see! :)

I'm with Orbit on this one. Race the CARS not the drivers. If a Pontiac wins NASCAR, does anybody other than Pontiac think this "Grand Prix" gives them REAL bragging rights on the showroom floor? If all the cars in the race are identical in power, weight, and aerodynamics, then winning all comes down to which overpaid, Prima Donna, pretty boy, billboard-toting, logo-flashing, tag-line-dropping, "I just want to thank God..." pseudo-redneck, hired gun driver is sitting in the car with the least malfunctions and damage! End of rant.

Originally posted by topdownloGTO@Oct 30 2003, 03:32 AM
like NASCAR or not, Pontiac is backing out of a high profile venue. I just don't get it (not the first time)
Exactly my point. Whether you like NASCAR or not, the fact is it is the second most popular sport in America and not far behind NFL football. It is still growing on pace to eclipse the NFL in the next few years and its fans are the most brand loyal(by a huge margin) of any sport. Often the Winston Cup race garners the highest ratings of any TV show over the weekend.

From a pure marketing stand point, Pontiac should remain prominent at this level as any other sort of racing is not even on the radar screen compared to NASCAR.
They are the official vehicle of the NHRA but when do you even hear mention of the NHRA on TV?? The GTO in a road racing series would be very cool but only diehard fans would even be aware of its existance.

I just feel a "performance" car company really needs to be involved in bigtime auto racing and dropping out of the most popular level is very unfortunate. I wonder if they will at least continue with the pacecar program and if they do, will they use the GTO?

I don't think NASCAR fans are exactly brand loyal. I've seen many Ford vehicles with #8's on them and many Chevy's with #6's. I think most people are driver loyal. If you identify with Bobby Labonte you root for him no matter what. Even if he switches from Ford to Chevy to Pontiac to Dodge or whatever. I think NASCAR would like the sponsors to believe that their fans are brand loyal. Obviously that perpetuates the series. I think it's more coincidence that NASCAR fans drink Bud', shop at Home Depot, use Craftsman Tools and eat at McDonald's........

Wait a minute. Wholly cow, I didn't realize how brand loyal I was. :D

CvP33 I will have to disagree with you that point about loyalty to brands. I thik it sucks that GM has pulled the Pontiac from NASCAR. I know they are trying to consolidate their efforts to combat Toyota that is entering NASCAR in 2005 but heck Pontiac has won two of the last four Championships for them.

NASCAR feeds on loyalty. What does Chevorlet have to offer now...the Mone Carlo LOL that is not even close to a performance car. Pontiac at least had a supercharged V6 in the GTP of which I own one and Tony Stewart has been driver of choice since he started. Cheveorlet has nothing. I am very disappointed in GM at this point for pulling Pontiac.

While saddened by the fact that Pontiac has left NASCAR, the two drivers that won the Winston Cup in Pontiacs the two of the last four years are Tony Stewart and Bobby Labonte from Gibbs Racing and the were both in Chevrolets this year.

Also, while a Ford won the championship this year, 7 of the top 10 were Monte Carlos. The other two were Dodges. The best finish by a Pontiac team was 24th by Johnny Benson. Pontiac's big moment this year was Craven winning by mear inches and that was pretty much it for the Pontiac highlight reel. Since losing Gibbs Racing, the return on Pontiacs investment just isn't there.

digitalgod that is because that Pontiac wasn't gining teams the support this year. Benson and Craven are good drivers and should have done better. It is just that Pontiac is GM's so-called perforamnce division and will have nothing to show for it in the racing circuit. Go figure.

And noone can answer why they are not placing a V-8 in the Monte Carlo. If you are going to race a hotrod build one too.

Originally posted by GTNTP@Nov 28 2003, 10:40 PM
It is just that Pontiac is GM's so-called perforamnce division and will have nothing to show for it in the racing circuit. Go figure.


They will have nothing to show for in the 'cars look alike roundy round' circuit. At the SAE meeting I attended, someone asked the marketing guy the question about racing GTO's and when the Trans Am series was brought up he kind of smiled and didn't say anything...

Now that sounds interesting but the real large audience is with NASCAR.

Anyone remember who ran an ASA based Grand Prix in the Trans Am series a few years ago? He ran fairly reliably and competitive on a very meager budget. It was a very unique TA car to make it through their standards.

While I'm sad to see Pontiac leave...here's what I think the reasoning is...and I have SOME insider info to back it:

BMW isn't in Nascar...GM wants Pontiac to be their BMW "M" competitior (oddly you'd expect Cadillac to take this w/ the new V-series). From what I understand Pontiac's "race-money" will be going to road-racers competing against Bimmers and Porsche's as well as 'vettes.

Perhaps the guys over @ Arrowhead Performance could back me up and shed some more light on this....Howie?

Originally posted by LT1Brutus@Dec 1 2003, 11:51 AM
Perhaps the guys over @ Arrowhead Performance could back me up and shed some more light on this....Howie?
I could shed some light... but i promised I wouldn't. :ph34r:

Let's just say our American Iron GTO racecar is just the beginning! ;)