Charlie Crist's NASCAR Sponsorship Goes Kaput

Charlie Crist's name will no longer be seen speeding by at the Coke Zero 400 race Saturday evening, since Phil Parsons Racing officials have decided to pull the "Charlie Crist for Florida" stickers featured on a NASCAR car.

Earlier this week, the Republican Party of Florida filed an ethics complaint over the sponsorship, alleging thatthe sponsorship violates Florida campaign law, which limits individual campaign contributions to $3,000 per person, per election. The average cost to sponsor a car in the race is around $55,000 to $60,000.

Phil Parsons said, however, that he didn't pull the sponsorship due to the RPOF complaintbut did so out of respect for his business partner, Mike Curb.

Curb is a Republican and a former Lieutenant Governor from California.

Crist spokesman Brendan Gilfillian said the campaign itself didn't pay for the sponsorship, but that it was an in-kind donation from a "big NASCAR fan."

The hood of the car, which would have had Crist's name plastered on it, will now be black.