COMMENTARY: Kauffman's Decision Bodes Badly For MWR

Kauffman (R) is changing teams

Michael Waltrip Racing majority owner Rob Kauffman will leave that team in the near future, assuming a new, minority ownership role at Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates

No matter how you slice it, that is bad news for MWR, its fans and employees.

No-one on earth – including the team’s namesake – knows more about the inner workings and financial viability of MWR than Kauffman. Michael’s name may be over the door, but since coming aboard as majority owner in October of 2007, Kauffman has effectively run the show. Sources close to the team say the former investment banker has made virtually every critical decision in the past eight years, providing the financing necessary to build new cars, invest in technology and keep the team on-track.

“Without Rob Kauffman,” said one team member on the condition of anonymity, “Michael Waltrip Racing would have been out of business long ago.”

Even with Kauffman’s assistance, it has sometimes been a rocky road.

MWR lost Truex and NAPA

In October of 2013, the team seemed poised to make a multi-car championship run. Heading into the regular-season finale at Richmond International Raceway, Clint Bowyer ranked second in the championship standings, with teammate Martin Truex, Jr. in solid contention for a Chase berth in 13th place. Late in the race, however, Bowyer spun his car under questionable circumstances to bring out a caution flag that benefitted Truex greatly. General Manager Ty Norris then ordered teammate Brian Vickers to pit road just moments before the race’s final restart, allowing Truex to secure the final on-track position necessary to secure a spot in the Chase.

NASCAR immediately investigated, pulling back the curtains on what quickly became a major, on-track controversy. The sanctioning body ultimately fined MWR $300,000 – the largest fine in the history of the sport -- removed Truex from the championship format, placed all three MWR crew chiefs on probation for the remainder of the season and suspended Norris indefinitely.

Even after those crippling blows, the hits just kept on coming.

NAPA Auto Parts left the team, reducing MWR’s roster from three full-time entries to two. Truex was forced to leave due to lack of sponsorship, followed in short order by No. 55 team crew chief Rodney Childers, who went on to superstardom (and a Sprint Cup Series championship) with Kevin Harvick at Stewart Haas Racing.

Vickers then fell by the wayside, as repeated bouts with blood clots forced him to the sidelines on three different occasions.

By virtually any meaningful yardstick, MWR today just a shadow of what it was in October of 2013. Bowyer is currently 15^th in points and clinging to the final spot in the 2015 Chase and David Ragan (driving in place of Vickers) ranked 24^th.

Longtime sponsor Aaron’s is in the final year of its contract with the team, and should they elect to go elsewhere in 2016 – not hard to imagine based on the instability of its No. 55 entry in recent years -- MWR would almost certainly find itself reduced to a single-car operation.

Rob Kauffman knows all this and more, and his decision to jump ship comprises a stunning `no confidence’ vote for the team he has run for the better part of a decade.

The team issued a somewhat vague written statement earlier today, saying that MWR and Ganassi “will continue to operate separately and compete against each other for the remainder of the 2015 season. They are also currently evaluating ways to field the most competitive race teams possible to provide an excellent platform for their partners and employees for the 2016 season and beyond. More details will follow in due course.”

For those not fluent in corporate fluff, that translates to “we’re racing now, and hope to continue.”

CGR co-owner Felix Sabates offered a slightly clearer view, telling Sirius XM NASCAR Radio's Jim Noble, "I'm not going anywhere.  This is about making our team stronger. A three-car team is stronger than a two-car. But the rumors that Rob is buying me out are not true. My last race will be five years from September 9th. I will be 75 years old then, and will be done."

The third car in the CGR stable next season will almost certainly be Bowyer’s No. 15, transported from Waltrip’s shop in Cornelius, NC to Ganassi’s Concord, NC digs.

Aside from fuzzily worded statements designed to keep the media wolves from the door (at least temporarily), none of the other involved parties are saying much right now, on or off the record. That’s understandable, since multi-million dollar deals of this sort require plenty of I’s to be dotted and T’s to be crossed. When the legal maneuvering is eventually completed, all parties will be free to step in front of the cameras and microphones and explain what’s happening, and why.

We can only hope that when it’s Michael Waltrip’s turn to speak, he is able to deliver some good news.

Photo: Jared Tilton/NASCAR