NASCAR Team Owners Boycott Meeting

[ron.brown11]

Well, things are trying to get more interesting at the Cup level. Today all of the Charter Holding team owners boycotted the quarterly meeting with the powers that be in Daytona. And they are not trying to hide the reason why. They are wanting a larger slice of the pie with the next TV contract. They've been dancing around it for a while now. so I guess today the gloves came off. I'm curious if we're heading for an IndyCar type of split, or just trying to blackmail NASCAR? I'm guessing the later, but there's still that SMI connection to the charter holding team owners group. I was already expecting this, just wasn't thinking it would start this early in the season. It could be a rough summer..

[rebelracewriter]

10 minutes ago, ron.brown11 said:

They are wanting a larger slice of the pie with the next TV contract.

https://sports.yahoo.com/reports-unhappy-with-revenue-negotiations-team-owners-boycott-meeting-with-nascar-160737121.html

 

Next on the horizon is everything going to PPV.....Wait and see.

Edited April 5, 2023 by rebelracewriter

[NickHolt]

Big money breeds big problems.

[24nomo]

ppv would be awesome, less commercials

[Radical]

3 hours ago, 24nomo said:

ppv would be awesome, less commercials

I would rather watch the races on free TV than to pay an outrageous price of a season on PPV.

[ron.brown11]

PPV sounds good when viewing it from that prospective. However, NASCAR is already reeling from the loss of viewership this season. Some of the races have had viewership numbers drop by double digits, compared to last season. If they went strictly to PPV, I would expect to see those numbers get to the 70% or more in falloff. Now you get to the supply side. Can NASCAR get enough people to sign up for PPV? As I said above, I don't see that happening. So then NASCAR will need to sell commercials to air on these PPVs. Somebody always has to foot the bill, oh and feed the beast. In this case you don't have 1 beast to feed, you have 4. NASCAR, the teams, the tracks, and the drivers. Yes, the drivers are under contract with the teams. But if teams can't afford to pay what a driver wants, what's the solution? They will hire a cheaper driver. We just watched that happen with Kyle Busch. M&Ms left, Gibbs couldn't/wouldn't absorb the driver's salary, and the grandson gets into grandpa's ride. 

As I've said before, this is one of two things happening here. The obvious one, is that the RTA is trying to force NASCAR into giving a bigger percentage of the new TV contract to the teams. The current contract is set to expire next season. Currently it's divided up as follows: 65% to the tracks; 25% to the teams; and 10% to NASCAR. The teams really only have 1 way to expand their income, and that is through sponsorship. Well, how is that going? The easiest way to measure that is to simply look to see how many teams operate with a single sponsor adorning a car. Is there a single car that runs 1 major sponsor for an entire season anymore? I guess you could say the #41 for SHR. But I'm pretty sure that Gene Haas isn't really happy footing the bill as a sponsor to his own team. So it's safe to say that huge sponsors aren't willing to singlehandedly to foot the bill anymore. That said, if the teams aren't making money, why do they all have these huge palatial shops?  Tracks however do have other options. They can sell the naming rights to a race. They make their most money however in the concessions, during a race weekend. But they also have the ability to hold other functions at the track; concerts; drifting; car shows etc. NASCAR too has other ways to generate income. They can sell sponsors for the "official" toilet paper of NASCAR etc. Oh yeah, and they own half the tracks that host those races. If there is a shift in the new tv money deal, I think it will look something like this: 60% tracks, 35% teams, and 5% NASCAR. I think that would make most parties happy, except for 2. SMI is not going to be happy at losing 5%, but they could afford it. The other is a track like Pocono. I don't know if a track not owned by either SMI or NASCAR could survive. 

Option 2 is that the RTA is trying to force a split from NASCAR. But seeing as how that there isn't an RTA owner that owns a race track, they would need a partner that does. Bruton Smith may be gone, but Marcus isn't. SMI & NASCAR have never been best buddies, but they did learn how to coexist. If SMI wanted to be a partner with the RTA, I could see that split happening. Plus, SMI has all but secured the required city/county blessings in Nashville to operate that track. They haven't spent all of this time and money there, and not have a plan for it. The same for North Wilksboro. SMI has actually spent the last 2-3 years spending money on things, that at first glance, don't make sense. Bruton always wanted to have his own racing series to rival NASCAR. Marcus has learned everything he knows about racing from that guy. A split is not that far fetched of an idea. Unfortunately it wasn't either with Indy car racing, and look at how that turned out.

 

As Nick said above "Big money breeds big problems". I hope that they can sort this all out. But 2023 could be a watershed moment for stock car racing. And if it turns to shit, always remember this, shit rolls down hill. It would have a tremendous effect on the Sat night racers & tracks alike.

[rebelracewriter]

4 hours ago, ron.brown11 said:

They can sell sponsors for the "official" toilet paper of NASCAR

There's a connection there!....Did I say that out loud?

[HiTech]

7 hours ago, 24nomo said:

ppv would be awesome, less commercials

As long as u can afford it go for it ..but not me i pay enough for my tv service now .i never ever ppv . and never plan on it ..i dont see a problem with the teams wanting more money .nascar  makes billions . THIER  cost goes up just the same ..with out the cars u have nothing .

[HiTech]

4 minutes ago, HiTech said:

As long as u can afford it go for it ..but not me i pay enough for my tv service now .i never ever ppv . and never plan on it ..i dont see a problem with the teams wanting more money .nascar  makes billions . THIER  cost goes up just the same ..with out the cars u have nothing .

ill add without tracks  the racers have nothing .. but this is not a regular weekend racetrack the stuggles just to open up .. 

[24nomo]

Do away with the charter, we can do without current owners.  Me and Hi Tech can build a car and go race clean in the back and get our huge paycheck.  Maybe Joe Biden will sponsor us if we wear a dress.     The chicks will dig us

Edited April 7, 2023 by 24nomo

[rebelracewriter]

8 hours ago, 24nomo said:

Do away with the charter, we can do without current owners.  Me and Hi Tech can build a car and go race clean in the back and get our huge paycheck.  Maybe Joe Biden will sponsor us if we wear a dress.     The chicks will dig us

[rebelracewriter]

Apparently they're not the only group unhappy with current contracts.

BREAKING NEWS!!!! Lucas Oil and the Chili Bowl Nationals have NOT renewed their contract for future events!! The Chili Bowl will now look for a new title sponsor ahead of the 2024 event in January. They are also expected to talk to other sports networks to broadcast Saturday nights features as they were previously held on Lucas' MavTV!!

[NickHolt]

I'm just glad I was lucky enough to live back in the day when NASCAR was actually a bunch of guys wanting to race something other than the cops on back mountain roads.

And lucky enough to be an active part - sometimes and important part - of San Antonio Speedway's storied history from day one until the day Terry Dickerson locked the gates. 

And lucky enough to be part of Neil Upchurch's Texas International Drivers Association from the very first days he took the "pony cars" to Mexico and promoted his first-ever Late Model show. Spent many an evening at his house figuring out weight formulas to balance the high compression V-8s, the 9:1 V-8s and the six cylinder Late Models.  And then working with him at paved tracks from Altus Oklahoma to Monterrey Mexico. And serving as his tech official for the Pro Sedans for many years.

And unlucky enough to witness the collapse of the once vibrant asphalt short track scene in Texas over the past few years. 

I'm hoping this site survives just for the sake of the many forums that bear witness to the sport over the past 22 years.

Nick

[ron.brown11]

The charters have always been a sore subject with me. But I truly understand why the owners want them, and NASCAR had to acquiesce. It was about the only way NASCAR could end the embarrassment of the start & park teams. Also, way too many team owners couldn't make a go of it for long before the charters, and then nothing they had was worth anything. Selling assets for 10 cents on the dollar can, and has broke more than 1 multi-millionaire team owner. At the very least, having a charter to sell gave owners something back for what they invested.

Now don't for a second think that I'm defending team owners, as they have made most of their own problems. Also, as I said above, I don't see many teams working out of their backyard garages. But the thought process goes like this: We need those fancy shops, to attract those big sponsors. I'm not sure if the argument holds up. I recall a driver/owner named Lennie Pond. He maintained and raced from a dirt floor 2 car garage, at his house. He had Pepsi as a sponsor, and won the Cup Rookie of the Year. I have no idea how much money was involved, but he made it work. 

However, with this new car, teams don't need these huge workforces and equipment anymore. Well, at least if they don't "play" with the single source parts. According to Brad K, when he went to Roush, the first thing he did was to figure out what machining equipment & personnel weren't needed, and got rid of them. Same with all the old car chassis', bodies and body fabricators. Three years ago, Hendricks had well over 600 employees in the race shops. I wonder what that number is today? I wonder how many fabricators and engineers have been let go? If it a really small number, then where is the long term "savings" the teams are supposed to see, with this new car. After all, that was NASCAR's biggest selling point for the owners, and potential new teams/owners. Like I said above, owners have created a lot of their problems.

I'm with you Nick, it's absolutely crushing to see what has happened to asphalt racing in TX, over the last 15 years. Most of the tracks that operated in Ohio, when I was growing up, are closed. The amazing thing is, for as small as OH is, they still have a lot of asphalt tracks still open. There are still more dirt tracks (that's always been the case there) there than asphalt though. But somehow they are still making it. My brother still lives there, and he says that the economy isn't great, so I don't get it. I've been to Altus, Kyle, SA,  Red River, & Houston. All had decent car counts on average. Did everybody just lose interest? Unfortunately I never got to CC. I know that SA could be really hard on cars in a crash, but rarely did a driver miss more than a race or 2 after a bad one. I also understand that the store bought chassis played a part in losing cars after bad crashes. Teams couldn't afford another one right away, if at all. For sure it has been very frustrating.. 

[HiTech]

12 hours ago, 24nomo said:

Do away with the charter, we can do without current owners.  Me and Hi Tech can build a car and go race clean in the back and get our huge paycheck.  Maybe Joe Biden will sponsor us if we wear a dress.     The chicks will dig us

lol.. one question  who is driving ..or should we add another seat  ,im good either way 

[HiTech]

Just now, HiTech said:

lol.. one question  who is driving ..or should we add another seat  ,im good either way 

i tried the dress high heel  shoes  a wig make up  once .. drank to much and let my girlfriend talk me into doing that   as a prank that turned out funny ..  the heels hurt with just two big toes keep my feet  on them . the dress was tight  but nice lol  . but make up  felt like dry mud . i never did that again  .detroyed my manhood for short time . thank the lord we didnt have cell phones then .. //  but i looked good  best i   ever looked . ... .cant believe  i just admited  that ..  no chance in hell of becoming a trans .

[arob]

Veteran NASCAR Broadcaster Sounds Alarm Bells on ‘Troubling Decline’ in 2023 Television Ratings (msn.com)

[MikePeters95]

I was talking about this with some buddies over the weekend.

I want everyone to imagine your 12 years old.  Someone older you look up to walks in.

"Hey check out these loud cars racing and going fast!!!!"

or

"This isn't what it used to be, it's in the decline, if people don't get interested it's going to die"

I think we've lost touch with motorsports, and how to sell it.  Until we stop critiquing it to death and just become car guys again, we're doing it to ourselves.

[Josh42]

On 4/7/2023 at 6:19 PM, rebelracewriter said:

Apparently they're not the only group unhappy with current contracts.

BREAKING NEWS!!!! Lucas Oil and the Chili Bowl Nationals have NOT renewed their contract for future events!! The Chili Bowl will now look for a new title sponsor ahead of the 2024 event in January. They are also expected to talk to other sports networks to broadcast Saturday nights features as they were previously held on Lucas' MavTV!!

Lucas Oil also dropped the ASCS series as well. Ive also seen where they have dropped a couple other series sponsorships and I believe they have changed their focus on team sponsorship.

[MikePeters95]

They may also just be reeling from all the over regulation and forced spending since the pandemic, which as we know from our wonderful president caused us to loose 55% of the US population when 200 million of us were lost to Covid 19.