DeeDee
03-25-2010, 11:12 PM
Billy Ballew Motorsports sponsor "taking drastic steps to avoid bankruptcy": In early February, Bristol, Tenn.-based Graceway Pharmaceuticals LLC announced it would continue sponsoring a NASCAR racing team as part of its efforts to raise awareness of a skin condition resulting from sun exposure. Now, in the wake of deep employment cuts announced this week, the company wishes it could get out of the sponsorship contract. "If there was any way to recoup $1 [of the sponsor fees] we would," John Bellamy, executive vice president and general counsel for Graceway, said Wednesday by phone. In federal court filings Tuesday, Graceway revealed that it will lay off 130 of its 323 employees, and that it is "taking drastic steps to avoid bankruptcy." The company's financial predicament will not affect its commitment to serve as the primary sponsor for the #51 NASCAR truck team, operated by Billy Ballew Motorsports and driven by Aric Almirola. "Had we been able to guess or foresee that these restructuring events would be necessary, we never would have entered into the NASCAR sponsorship or some of our other marketing contracts," Bellamy wrote in an e-mail response to the Bristol Herald Courier. "Since these contracts are pre-paid, we want some benefit from them, and, consequently, we intend to use the NASCAR sponsorship and other binding agreements to promote our products and a new product which we expect the [Federal Drug Administration] to approve soon." Bellamy added, "To suggest or imply in any way or form that Graceway is maintaining NASCAR or other pre-paid marketing programs in place of, or at the expense of, employees is wholly wrong. It is ludicrous to even think so." Asked about his partnership with Graceway, Ballew said by phone Wednesday, "We have a great relationship with them. Everything's going just wonderful." Graceway's declared goal in the sponsorship is to raise awareness of actinic keratosis, a condition caused by long-term exposure to the sun that can result in skin cancer if left untreated. Aldara cream is prescribed to treat the condition. Asked about Graceway's recent layoffs, Ballew said, "I have no idea about it."(TriCities.com)(3-25-2010)~jayski