Sale of Phoenix Racing (3rd Update)
Brandt Chief Marketing Officer Karl Barnhart denied on Tuesday that Brandt is purchasing or has purchased Phoenix Racing. He said Brandt has no plans to make a formal announcement in relation to NASCAR in the coming days.
“We are incredibly happy with our NASCAR Nationwide program," he said. “We are concentrating on winning a championship this year."
Fox Sports reported Brandt, a crop, fertilizer and agricultural services company, and Harry Scott, co-owner of Turner Scott Motorsports, would partner to buy Phoenix Racing from James Finch. Allgaier currently drives for Turner Scott.
Finch confirmed he has sold his two-car team, which competes in both the Sprint Cup and Nationwide series, but declined to name the purchaser. According to Finch, the deal includes the race team’s assets, employees and shop in Spartanburg, S.C. Phoenix Racing has competed in NASCAR since 1989.
07/18/13 Team Owner James Finch would not name the potential buyer, but a source said that Turner Scott Motorsports co-Owner Harry Scott Jr. "had strong interest." Turner Scott teams compete in NASCAR's Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series. Finch will fund the No. 51 Chevy that "gets its engines and chassis from Hendrick Motorsports through the July 28 Brickyard 400" at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Sources said that Finch will "be with the organization that also fields a Nationwide car part time through the Sept. 7 Sprint Cup race at Richmond" ESPN.com
07/17/13 It’s sold. With those two words, James Finch announced the sale of Phoenix Racing on Wednesday. Finch declined to name the buyer, explaining that the new owner preferred to make an announcement of his own either Friday or Monday.
“I can’t tell you yet," Finch said.
Finch added that he will assist the new owner through the Sprint Cup race at Atlanta on Sept. 1. That race will mark the end of Finch’s 23-year run as a Sprint Cup and Nationwide team owner.
“They wanted the help," Finch said. “They’ve never run any Cup races or anything like that, so I’m going to help them. I don’t want to say a whole lot. They’ve got a sponsorship and a driver they want to introduce later in the year."
Finch had been exploring the sale of his team for the past few years, too often running races without a primary sponsor.
“I’ve been doing it a long time," he said. “I’d recommend anybody to do it. If I was (younger) I’d do it again. I’ve met a lot of people and had a great time doing it. It’s just time to move on."
07/16/13 The sale of #51-Phoenix Racing is not yet complete, but team general manager Steve Barkdoll said the organization is continuing to build cars for future races. Team owner James Finch had hoped to have completed the sale of his team by Monday. If he does not sell the team, he will close the shop in two weeks after the July 28 race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Barkdoll said he is confident the team will be sold and continue racing. AJ Allmendinger will drive for the team for the Brickyard 400 and if the team continues operating, the current plan is to have him in the car the following week at Pocono, Barkdoll said. Sporting News