$ cuts? (1 Viewer)

I understand reduction in business revenues causes reductions in costs. What troubles me about the second reduction in purses is:

  1. The wording in the letter about extensive discussions between NHRA and pro teams and their representatives. If Terry McMillen has contacted a bunch of the teams and can't find one team that was part of the extensive discussions, I have to question the integrity of the letter.
  2. The cut represents a 70% cut in purses. I would be interested to know if the top 10 employees of NHRA have taken anything close to 70% pay cuts. While NHRA has no requirement to disclose this information, it would help a lot with transparency as many posters to these chat rooms are highly suspicious of what sacrifices the people at the top have made. The teams should not be the ones to bear all the brunt of the revenue loss.
Thus, the issue is integrity and transparency. If the NHRA stays silent, they have no one to blame but themselves for racers and fans not trusting them.
 
If the "gate" in 2018 was $75 Million, how much could it be this year?

Given there are only 11 events this season, and only two without major restrictions on spectator numbers, my guess would be that gate for the year would be under $10m.

I understand reduction in business revenues causes reductions in costs. What troubles me about the second reduction in purses is:

  1. The wording in the letter about extensive discussions between NHRA and pro teams and their representatives. If Terry McMillen has contacted a bunch of the teams and can't find one team that was part of the extensive discussions, I have to question the integrity of the letter.
  2. The cut represents a 70% cut in purses. I would be interested to know if the top 10 employees of NHRA have taken anything close to 70% pay cuts. While NHRA has no requirement to disclose this information, it would help a lot with transparency as many posters to these chat rooms are highly suspicious of what sacrifices the people at the top have made. The teams should not be the ones to bear all the brunt of the revenue loss.
Thus, the issue is integrity and transparency. If the NHRA stays silent, they have no one to blame but themselves for racers and fans not trusting them.

The executives aren't necessarily martyrs to the sport. If they had pay expectations for their role based on their previous experience and what they could earn elsewhere in the industry, they aren't going to hang around if that significantly falls. There is no obligation on them to make sacrifices as they have other options, but racers don't - this is the one series available to them. A huge pay cut may result in a mass exodus - good or bad depending on your point of view, I guess. All this sounds harsh towards the racers I know, but I'm playing a little devil's advocate here.

 
Cruz hit it out of the park. Everyone is trying their best to survive this. If some racers are to boycott, the people they are hurting most are the fans who spent money to attend those races and the fans who took time out of their day to watch the race on TV.
 
I understand what Cruz said. You pretty much have to agree what he said about NHRA and their finances. Where he is off is he is obviously a full funded team but there are some without full funding that depend on the payouts, plus some of their own money, to be able to race. Terry McM sounds like he is right on the edge as far as sponsorships paying his full costs. The way his car runs he is pretty much guaranteed to qualify and go some rounds so he can factor the round money into his budget. At the U.S .Nationals there were at least 5 or 6 T/F cars that depend on the qualifying/round money to help them race. At every race there are always some cars that run only a few races a year because that's all they can afford and they look for that money to help their expenses. Gary Densham has done that for years.
NHRA is in a bad situation and you will see less part timers bringing their cars out of the garage which will result in short fields.
 
And he left in 2015

And it was mentioned back in 2015 when Compton "retired" that there would be a payout as part of his compensation package. Given that we do not have a tax return more recent than 2018, my guess is that Compton's payout has now been exhausted and no longer shows up in executive compensation.
 
There are a lot of financials involved in what everyone is teeing of on. No doubt. There is the aspect of the money teams have from a sponsor may have already been spent. So could teams give that money back? Do they want to give that money back? Hence the Catch-22.

I know the budget for many teams in IndyCar was set around running the Indy 500. And when the race was in doubt months ago, there was great concern. Sponsors pay a large percentage of money under the assumption that the race will be run. Luckily for everyone it did.

For those in the NHRA with sponsors that have paid money, the sponsor knows there's an opportunity for the car to be on TV. They also know they paid the money for the companies logo to be on TV. I would guess that making the sponsor happy will pay dividends over the long haul. But geez, this is a tough spot for owners that entertain us on Sunday.
 
I would really love to read it but I stopped using Facebook along time ago.

Jim Hill

Jim whether you on Facebook or not, you should be able to watch the video.

I'm by no means a fan of the NHRA big show, but I have to agree with what Cruz is conveying. It's not like they're immune to the situation we all find ourselves in these days. They provide the opportunity and it is up to the customers (racers, spectators, vendors, etc.) to decide if it is worth the while to attend. For me over the last 10 year, the answer is no.
 
It would be better for all dragracing enthusiasts to sit back and let the process role. Of course the people at the top have to face the music for their compensation but we are in between a rock and a hard place and hopefully the ones at the top will attempt to correct the current situation and return to the normal eventually. Anybody who decides that their life purpose should be chasing the Top Fuel Championship or races in Street Stock wants dragracing to carry on. Don't forget that last years numbers are used to predict the future and sh.t hit the fan in the middle and changed the equation for everyone, so the return to what we were expecting could be a while. My feelings for the lower budgeted teams hits home and perhaps adjustments could be made to get them to future races. I am just a fan and really miss the regular season but I'll go with the flow and hope for the best.

I've been following dragracing for a long time and I remember Wally Parks stating that the NHRA was dedicated to safety and also was a not for profit company!
 
Jim whether you on Facebook or not, you should be able to watch the video.

I'm by no means a fan of the NHRA big show, but I have to agree with what Cruz is conveying. It's not like they're immune to the situation we all find ourselves in these days. They provide the opportunity and it is up to the customers (racers, spectators, vendors, etc.) to decide if it is worth the while to attend. For me over the last 10 year, the answer is no.

I think N.H.RA. after Gainesville may have their answer for the direction things are going in for 2021
I thought maybe they might take the high road and make a statement explaining why they did what they did but apparently so far they have said nothing.

I will not spend any more money on anything to do with the N.H.R.A.

Sorry but that is the way I feel. Jim Hill
 
I read Foley's article, and there's not much he's saying that's wrong, IMO. No matter how we got here, the most important thing at this point is to do what Doug and many on here are saying, the NHRA and the race teams (big and small) need to start really communicating about creating a path forward. Adversity always presents opportunity, and some of what's happening now may be part of creating a stronger sport going forward for years to come, such as less events, shorter events, etc.

Susan Wades interview of Alan Johnson Racing's Director of Business Development/Operations Tami Powers said the similar thing over two years ago.
 
As of today Sept 11th, 12 for TF and 14 for FC. Currently Kalitta Racing is not entered.

And so far not a word from the N.H.R.A.

Just reduce the pay-out by 67% and then say nothing about it speaks volumes for the character of the people running the show at the N.H.R.A.

Jim Hill
 
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