Nascar CEO Brian France Says Business Isn't For Sale

NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France picked yesterday to shoot down rumors the family-owned sanctioning body is for sale.

"I am committed to my job for the foreseeable future," France said yesterday during an unscheduled press conference at Homestead-Miami Speedway. "That's years, not months or whatever. Our family has absolutely no interest in selling NASCAR or International Speedway Corp.

"We can put that rumor right to bed. Our management team is the deepest and best it has been, from (NASCAR president) Mike Helton on down, the people who run this sport are committed for the long run."

Photo of Brian France by Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

France also told the Daytona Beach News-Journal: "We lost my father (Bill France Jr.) and naturally questions come out. You just need to hear it from me as directly as you can, NASCAR is not for sale."

France blamed the rumors on race-focused Internet sites.

"The beauty of the Internet is that you have a lot of information flowing around," he said. "The unfortunate thing is people have lot of time on their hands to speculate. I am committed to my job for the foreseeable future."

France also commented an aspect of modern sports - falling television ratings. The Nextel Cup Series ratings have dropped about 10 percent in the last few seasons.

"There are lots of different ways for fans to get information, to watch, read and pick up video clips," he said. "They are watching less as far as actual ratings but you have to put that in context. We're No. 2 in (sports) ratings. We like the position where we are at."

Television ratings only measure a small part of the success pie. There's a reason Nascar is second behind the National Football League in popularity. They know how to market their stars and the events draw huge crowds week in and week out.