04/07/2008 20:06. It is the midway point in the summer racing season and there are questions to be answered just about everywhere. At the top of the list: Is NASCAR on the verge of financially crumbling from within?

Team owner Chip Ganassi's decision to stop operations on Dario Franchitti's car and cut loose 71 people associated with that operation caused more than shrugged shoulders in the stock car ranks. Since the car's primary sponsor bolted at the end of last season, none has been found to take its place.

None stepped forward - even with Indianapolis 500 winner Franchitti and potentially his wife, Ashley Judd, as part of the package. So, Ganassi said enough.

"There's no money," he told the Associated Press this week. "It makes no sense to be running this out of my pocket. I had to put a stop to... // The Plain Dealer - cleveland.com