How much would it be for an outsider with no experience to purchase,
staff, operate, and profit from a NASCAR Nextel Cup race team?  (And
by staff I of course mean the car end and business end of things.)

Hi! Thanks for an interesting question.

The link to the article below provides a good estimate of the cost in
running a Nascar racing team.

In-House Engine Program - $3.5+ Million 

Team Salaries (Composed of about 90-100 people) - $2.5-3.5 million

Travel - $1 million

Tires - $1 million (costs about $20,000 per race plus testing)

Cars - $1-3 million (Per car building cost is about $125,000 and each
team has about 12-15 cars)

Driver Salaries - Rookie salaries comes about $400k but star drivers
go about $11 million but this also includes other sources like
sponsorships.


The article also has a breakdown on the expected profits. Profits will
mostly come from sponsorships.
 
Source: "NASCAR Nation's Big Story: The Cost of Racing" by Ryan McGee
http://msn.foxsports.com/nascar/story/3489526


Search terms used:  
costs  running a nascar race team

I hope this link would help you in your research. Before rating this
answer, please ask for a clarification if you have a question or if
you would need further information.
                                                          
                              
Regards,                              
Easterangel-ga                              
Google Answers Researcher

Hey thanks!  I have always been curious about that.  Now I just need
to win the lottery so I can afford my own team!!!