National Guard Dropping Motorsports (1 Viewer)

[Paul]

Hopefully all is good with the Army and DSR.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...jr-losing-national-guard-as-sponsor/13700789/

 

[robinjackson]

Hopefully all is good with the Army and DSR.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...jr-losing-national-guard-as-sponsor/13700789/

It states $12million a year for the Rahal Indycar team. That would keep two or three quality TF/FC teams going, by all accounts.

 

[mw6789]

$12 million for a Indy Car team?!?!?!? No wonder this country is in debt over its eyeballs. All I read and hear from friends in the military is about all the downsizing they are going through, so there is really no need for advertising for new recruits.

 

[rckymtn3]

Are you glossing over the $32M/yr for Junior's team in NASCAR? This all with what they call no real bump in recruitment, especially since many transition from active military to the Guard with no recruitment necessary. That terrible and marketing term "brand recognition" became the only real return.

 

[Nunz]

I'd bet you could run more than 2 or 3 fuel cars for 12mil/year provided the infrastructure was in place.

 

[Mike]

From HMS:Our team has a contract in place to continue the National Guard program at its current level in 2015. We have not been approached by the Guard about potential changes and plan to honor our current agreement."(Hendrick Motorsports)(8-6-2014)

 

[vegasnitro]

You are about to see the rats fleeing the sinking ship if Panther Racing doesn't drop their lawsuit. I believe the Guard is proactively reducing their involvement in motorsports before the discovery process of that lawsuit, no matter what that press release says. The GAO would love to Court Martial some generals and colonels, throw in the fact there are no verifiable recruits and they are over 100 million deep into the program ... Tough questions to be answer, and if Panther Racing gets their way, those questions will be answered under oath.

 

[Paul]

From HMS:Our team has a contract in place to continue the National Guard program at its current level in 2015. We have not been approached by the Guard about potential changes and plan to honor our current agreement."(Hendrick Motorsports)(8-6-2014)

The government has out clauses in their contracts because it is unknown whether or not congress will approve the budget each year (typical they only have 1 year deals). HMS will need a new sponsor next year because the government isn't sending them a check.

 

[Mike]

Paul, and you know for sure that the contract for 2015 hasnt been signed?

 

[70AARCuda]

Maybe they should apply for Section 8 housing and food stamps.....and still get a govt check...lol

 

[cantdrive55]

There is no 2015 deal for Dale Jr & HMS with the Guard. The PR release by HMS was probably a last ditch effort to try and save the sponsorship. Panther Racing no longer exists, finally sold all their equipment not that long ago. I thought John Barnes was suing Rahal, not the Guard? Either way this is bad timing for both Rahal and HMS. Most companies are usually finalizing 2015 budgets right about now. I think HMS will find something to fill the quarter panels on the 88, but they'll probably sweat it out for a bit. RLL is the one that I'd be more concerned about.

 

[Mike]

Ok.

 

[vegasnitro]

There is no 2015 deal for Dale Jr & HMS with the Guard. The PR release by HMS was probably a last ditch effort to try and save the sponsorship. Panther Racing no longer exists, finally sold all their equipment not that long ago. I thought John Barnes was suing Rahal, not the Guard? Either way this is bad timing for both Rahal and HMS. Most companies are usually finalizing 2015 budgets right about now. I think HMS will find something to fill the quarter panels on the 88, but they'll probably sweat it out for a bit. RLL is the one that I'd be more concerned about.

Pretty sure John Barnes is suing RLL, IndyCar (for tampering) and The Guard (for breach).

In any event, this lawsuit could be nothing but sour grapes, or it could be an absolute game changer. Frankly, I am stunned no one has paid John Barnes/Panther to just go away.

EDIT: Panther is suing RLL, IndyCar, DocuPak (PR agency that put the Guard's deal together) and some dude named Metzler (was the officer at the guard in charge of the deal). So, while the Guard is not named directly, I have little doubt this is why they are pulling out of motorsports. There is no way top brass at the Guard want these deals looked at in front of a judge, under oath, with the GAO waiting in the wings.

http://www.racer.com/more/viewpoint...lawsuit-against-rll-indycar-sergeant-docupack

 

[rocketman]

I think the party is over.

 

[yoda]

I think the party is over.

Isn't that Sherwood's line?...

 

[Jimbo]

It's another sign of the state of auto racing in general.

Right now many different forms of racing from stock car to drag racing are trying very hard to figure out why this is happening.

There is no question that the economy is part of the problem but the elephant in the room that no one really wants to talk about is the lack of interest on the part of fans and participants in everything from stock car racing, drag racing, professional golf, and even things like professional hockey!! I like to look at car counts at big events and that should tell you something about the direction things are heading in. There are still some events that draw full fields but the problem is the rest of the events.

You better believe that sponsors also see this happening and are wondering if the money they are spending might be better spend in different things.

Many on this forum have voiced their opinion with the N.H.R.A sometimes getting bumped on TV for professional or even college football.

It's just my opinion but I believe peoples interests are changing in how they want to spend their time and money right now.

Personally I hate to see this happening but when I look at how it is to find sponsors willing to step up and fund racing teams and how many great drivers are sitting on the sidelines because of a lack of funding it kind of scary!!

Jimbo

http://www.nostalgicracingdecals.com

 

[JB3]

It's another sign of the state of auto racing in general.

Right now many different forms of racing from stock car to drag racing are trying very hard to figure out why this is happening.

There is no question that the economy is part of the problem but the elephant in the room that no one really wants to talk about is the lack of interest on the part of fans and participants in everything from stock car racing, drag racing, professional golf, and even things like professional hockey!! I like to look at car counts at big events and that should tell you something about the direction things are heading in. There are still some events that draw full fields but the problem is the rest of the events.

You better believe that sponsors also see this happening and are wondering if the money they are spending might be better spend in different things.

Many on this forum have voiced their opinion with the N.H.R.A sometimes getting bumped on TV for professional or even college football.

It's just my opinion but I believe peoples interests are changing in how they want to spend their time and money right now.

Personally I hate to see this happening but when I look at how it is to find sponsors willing to step up and fund racing teams and how many great drivers are sitting on the sidelines because of a lack of funding it kind of scary!!

Jimbo

http://www.nostalgicracingdecals.com

Excellent points Jim ...

I think everybody here missed the $32M price tag that the Guard was paying HMS for only 20 races on the #88. I think that paints the bigger picture of the overall problem. GREED. Team owners in all motorsports have gotten very aggressive in their approach to sponsorship. Now, its not the teams fault that the sponsor said yes and signed the contract. However in these hard economic times, big business has been forced into looking at how they spend their $$ vs. ROI

NASCAR has 10x the problem of NHRA with sponsor dollars, especially with price tags like $32M. Look at how many top teams (Gordon, Stewart, Earnhardt Jr, Kennseth, Petty, Harvick) have multiple primary sponsorships that cover different blocks (not just single races) of the total season. When is their not enough to go around. The clincher kind of is when you look at John Force and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (most popular drivers in their respective sports) and realize they are both seeking 2015 sponsorship. Not saying they won't have sponsors, but I bet their packages for 2015 (and hopefully beyond) will look much different than what we are used to seeing.

And we all know how hard it has become to attract sponsors to NHRA Professional teams.

 

[Jimbo]

Jim Bowen: I agree with you!

Putting the entire sponsor ship problem issue aside the big next big problem is with getting spectators to come to events for most for all forms of racing.

I have always thought the N.H.R.A. did a very good job with ticket prices when compared to NASCAR.

With the N.H.R.A. you can walk through the pit area and get close to whoever your favorite driver or team and with NASCAR you get to sit in your seat or walk down to the fence.

For my dollars the N.H.R.A. is a better deal.

Jimbo

 

[Paul]

Paul, and you know for sure that the contract for 2015 hasnt been signed?

If the government says no such thing exists, how do you think this will play out? Again, the Guard has out clauses in their deals that allows them to pull the funding at the end of every year and use the excuse that congress doesn't approve the funding anymore.

 

[mw6789]

Are you glossing over the $32M/yr for Junior's team in NASCAR? This all with what they call no real bump in recruitment, especially since many transition from active military to the Guard with no recruitment necessary. That terrible and marketing term "brand recognition" became the only real return.

I agree the big check for NASCAR is ridiculous too, but at least Dale Jr. is probably one of the most well known names in all of motorsports. The whole deal is just a terrible waste of money in my opinion. Its not like the military needs name recognition---I believe most of the population is aware of its existence.