Carl Edwards, Ricky Stenhouse Jr, and Greg Biffle wouldn’t be racing in the NASCAR Cup Series if not for their success in the lower divisions. All three drivers rose through the ranks at a time when Ford had a genuine foothold in the O’Reilly Series. But once the likes of JRM and JGR, backed by Chevy and Toyota, expanded, they began to fade out. It looked as if Ford’s talent pipeline wasn’t as strong as its rivals. And these were just the early signs of the doomsday scenario Ford is currently facing.

The only multi-entry Ford team, AM Racing, has decided to shut down its racing operations from the O’Reilly Series after 2026. Matt Weaver shared the important update on X: “AM Racing has notified employees that it has formally ceased operations and released everyone from their duties.” So far, there’s been no official announcement from the AM Racing camp, and even the employees haven’t been paid their dues, according to Weaver. This news comes as a shock, but many folks saw it coming.

The last time AM Racing fielded a race car on the track was at Rockingham. Nick Sanchez was scheduled to drive the No. 25 entry, but later backed out. This led to a lot of questions surrounding AM Racing’s future. The report shared by Matt Weaver also stated that the team was facing financial issues and had plans to sell its assets to Sigma Performance Service. This was strange, given that Harrison Burton took the team to the playoffs last year, driving the No. 25 car.

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Although last year they were in the playoffs, the team failed to win a single race. From Hailie Deegan to Harrison Burton, and then Nick Sanchez, the big-profile drivers took the seat, but the team never had the success they aimed for. The deal with Sigma was something they were rooting for to keep them financially afloat, but without it, they had no option but to shut down. Imagine shelling out $1-3 million without sustained success on track. Expectedly, without outside support, there’s only so much teams like AM Racing can do. But there’s a bigger issue behind the closure of this team.

Cole Custer won the 2023 O’Reilly Series title, driving the #00 Stewart-Haas Ford. But once SHR walked out of NASCAR, the Hass Factory team abandoned Ford and went to Chevrolet, leaving AM Racing as the premier Ford team. As things stand, Hettinger Racing, which fields the No. 5 Ford, is the only full-time entry. And this ride is shared by five drivers: Luke Baldwin, JJ Yeley, Chandler Smith, Tyler Gonsalves, and Luke Fernhaus. Like AM Racing, Hettinger also failed to field cars for two consecutive races.

At a time when powerhouse teams like HMS are developing Corey Day, and JGR is doing the same with Brent Crews, Ford lacks the leadership and structure. Chevrolet and Toyota are still funneling resources into the O’Reilly Series in hopes of forging future talent. Look at Connor Zilisch and Corey Heim; both OEMs have had their success stories. Yet, Ford seems disjointed and out of sorts when it comes to developing a talent pipeline. However, there’s still a glimmer of hope for them, at least for now.

RSS Racing is fielding a Ford car, No. 38, for Logan Bearden. This entry was listed in NASCAR’s official entry list for the Dover race weekend. Again, this is just a band-aid fix to the current issues Ford is dealing with their feeder series program. Ever since Team Penske ditched the O’Reilly series in 2018, Ford is left without an anchor support that can help the smaller teams grow.

Why is it so difficult to run a team in NASCAR’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series?

NASCAR has become somewhat of a business in recent years. The running costs for teams have been extremely high, and the revenue has been too low. Most rely on sponsor money to keep things flowing smoothly, and hence, some of them end up signing drivers with better sponsor backing instead of a stronger skillset.

While that works in the Cup Series, the disparity of pay between that and the NOAPS is far too great. This year’s Darlington race, for example, had a whopping $11,233,037 purse for the Cup Race. But for the O’Reilly Auto Parts race, it was just $1,653,590. Considering that, and the fact that running each race in the NOAPS can cost between $130,000 to $160,000, it is quite understandable why each one of them is facing a huge financial crunch.

Moreover, Cup Series teams have better, high-paying sponsors, the media revenue share, and overall better and standardized operating teams. The massive disparity in the payout difference is largely because of the revenue that both series generate, with the Cup Series taking the lead there.

The gap in infrastructure is another factor to consider. Modern equipment, like simulators, updated parts, engineering depth, and travel, costs nearly as much at the NOAPS level as it does in Cup. The car underneath the driver is nearly identical. The difference is that Cup teams have the revenue to absorb those costs, while NOAPS teams are running the same race on a fraction of the budget.

If teams have strong backing or institutional history, like JR Motorsports or Richard Childress Racing, they can absorb the volatility. Even Cup-level operations sometimes subsidize NOAPS entries: Hendrick Motorsports backed Rajah Caruth’s development for years through HendrickCars.com sponsorship. But not every promising driver has that kind of patron, and not every team has that kind of floor.