Reports have surfaced that General Motors has held meetings with some of NASCAR’s most successful Sprint Cup Series teams to discuss the future of their relationship. Amid concerns about the support NASCAR teams would receive from GM following their Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing on the first of the month, the manufacturer has met with the top-level teams in the sport to address the issue directly.

Last week, GM announced it would be cutting back its support of teams in NASCAR’s Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series, and with Wednesday’s meetings it appears those cuts are more than likely going to occur on the Cup side of the garage as well.

The Associated Press is reporting Hendrick Motorsports and Stewart-Haas Racing took part in the meetings with GM, while ESPN.com added Earnhardt Ganassi Racing and Richard Childress Racing to the list.

Stewart-Haas Racing officials confirmed to HardcoreRaceFans.com the team met with General Motors Wednesday, with team owner Tony Stewart reaffirming his support of the manufacturer.

“We have been, and will continue to be, strong supporters of GM and its Chevrolet brand,” Stewart said in a statement. “These are tough times for our auto industry, and in light of what’s happening to them and how it affects all the people who make a living building and selling cars and trucks, the sacrifices we’ll have to make as a race team are pretty weak in comparison.

“We believe in the products GM has now and in the products they’re building for the future. We’re proud to carry the Chevy bowtie on the hoods of our racecars, and we support GM in this time of uncertainty because we know they’ll be an even stronger company in the years to come.

“While this cutback will force us to review our budget at SHR, it will not impact our preparation for the track or the return on investment we provide to our partners. We’re racers, and racers find a way to make things work.”

Speaking with a GM spokesperson Thursday, HardcoreRaceFans.com learned the manufacturer has not formally announced any cutbacks to the Cup Series as of yet.

“Chevrolet’s involvement in racing is a sound business decision that translates directly into the sale of cars and trucks,” a statement from General Motors read. “It is essential; however, that we continue to look at every penny we spend as General Motors takes the necessary steps to become a leaner company with a significantly stronger balance sheet. While Chevy Racing is talking to its business partners about ways to reduce cost and maximize the return on investment, it is our policy to not talk about the details of business relationships with our partners.”

While nothing has officially been announced by GM, it is clear these cutbacks will occur. The big question remains what effect, if any, they will have on the performance of these top-teams.

With so much money coming in from other sources and a car that is in essence a spec race car, perhaps now is the best time possible in the sport’s history for the manufacturers to struggle. Now, don’t take that the wrong way. Nobody wants to see the manufacturers pull their support, but it appears with the amount of sponsorship dollars these teams have and the way the new car has been designed and presented by NASCAR, perhaps this will not be as big a blow to the Hendrick, Childress, EGR and Stewart-Haas teams as it was to, say, Rex White in 1964.

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