. . . reminds me of my biggest pet peeve about this sport and that is, the lack of meritocracy. Connolly, who is arguably the best driver in pro stock, cannot race because he doesn't have millions or is not related to someone who does. No other sport i can think of, where pure talent is bypassed because of $$$. Connolly had a great chance to win but mysteriously went silent racing GA in E2. How cool would it have been to see a Enders / Connolly Final.
Nitromater
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Connolly subbing for Latino
- Thread starter camaro
- Start date
It's not just drag racing...
Everyone pretty much knows this going in. Every aspiring young drag racer should become a marketing major so they know how to go out and pound the pavement for sponsors. Too many drag racers sit around waiting for the phone to ring with $$ on the other end. It rarely happens that way.
They probably would have run each other into the wall. No love lost between those two.
There you have it.
Just Paul
Nitro Member
This is true from Jr. Dragsters up to Top Fuel, and includes all forms of motorsports.
Side note, I'm a huge DC fan, and was glad to see him get the chance. He's always been a bad ass behind the wheel.
Not in F1. There are many drivers out there who are better than Lance Stroll, but don't have a daddy who can buy a team.
That 6 million $$ figure is actually surprising to me. I get $500,000.00, or maybe a million or two, but if he is looking for 6 million from potential drivers, and presuming that is just to fund a portion of the season - sheesh - how can NASCAR teams survive?
ironpony
Nitro Member
Sergio Perez is a heavily-sponsored Formula 1 driver, with his sponsors, primarily Telmex and its related companies, contributing a significant amount of money to Red Bull Racing. It's estimated that Telmex has contributed over $100 million since Perez joined the team, according to F1 Oversteer. Perez's sponsors also cover his salary, with estimates suggesting they pay around $30 million annually to Red Bull, reports MARCA.
This was one of the reasons RedBull had such a hard time replacing him, he brought big money with him
Formula 1 is a whole other world financially. The amount of money spent is obviously nowhere near what is spent on NASCAR, Indy Car, or NHRA. Which begs the question, why is Formula 1 still so popular world wide when it is such an unbelievably crappy show? It is a technology parade, not racing. It hasn't been racing for decades. I couldn't care less about it.
About 26-27 years ago, I was working for a company that was an active sponsor in NASCAR. McLaren came to them with a proposal for an F1 sponsorship. The price McLaren was asking for a team sponsorship in the late 1990s was $55 million. I have no idea how much it is today.
"Drive to Survive" has a lot to do with the popularity of F1.
Like it or not, Harry is right. Throughout the history of motorsports drivers -- sometimes talented, other times not so much -- have been able to buy a drive, which often eliminates someone far more deserving. We may not like that system, but it is the reality of racing.
Interestingly enough, several F1 outlets have recently been including stories from accomplished observers and/or drivers who state that Stroll is much better than some people are giving him credit for. One problem is that the Aston-Martin isn't particularly competitive right now because the team is already working on their 2026 entry, which will be radically different from the 2025 cars.
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