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Permalink Reply by Bigzoom on September 17, 2008 at 8:53am

Also Patrick Carpantier Officially Released

NASCAR SCENE NEWS

Patrick Carpentier is officially a free agent as the driver says that Gillett Evernham Motorsports has told him it does not have a sponsor for him for next season. Carpentier had been free to talk to other teams, but GEM had first right of refusal until Tuesday. GEM could still find a sponsor for Carpentier, but the former open-wheel driver believes that likely will not happen. GEM already has three drivers under contract for next year – current drivers #9-Kasey Kahne and #19-Elliott Sadler as well as Chip Ganassi Racing’s Reed Sorenson. “We’re talking to a couple of teams, and some of them seem to have a good interest,” Carpentier said. “Hopefully we do [find something], but you never know in racing.” Carpentier’s business partner, Robert Desrosiers, said he was optimistic that Carpentier could find a ride with another team. “There are still some good rides [that] are available,” Desrosiers said. “We’re talking to all these guys. … Now that Patrick is free, I believe one of these teams will be interested in sitting down with us.”

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Permalink Reply by Bigzoom on September 17, 2008 at 8:57am

DODGE MOTORSPORTS

PRESS RELEASE

Dodge officials expect Gillett Evernham Motorsports to remain with the manufacturer next season, despite reports the team wants to abandon the slumping automaker for a deal with Toyota.
Mike Delahanty, senior manager for Dodge Motorsports programs, called a possible GEM switch to Toyota "nothing but pure speculation."

GEM is believed to be in talks to purchase Bill Davis Racing, one of the original Toyota teams, as a way to expand to four cars.

A Fox Sports report said the acquisition of BDR would pave the way for Gillett to switch to Toyota.

"Dodge and Gillett Evernham have a long history that dates back to our return to Sprint Cup racing. Dodge and GEM have a long-term contract in place, and we plan to continue as partners in NASCAR," Delahanty said Tuesday in a national conference call. "We're aware and have had discussions about GEM's interest in adding a fourth car, but there's been never any discussion about running anything ... but a Dodge. Anything beyond that, we classify as just pure speculation."

Ray Evernham founded the race team around Dodge's return to Cup racing in 2001. His two cars were among the original Dodge entries, and both were sponsored by the automaker. The team eventually expanded to three teams, and Evernham sold majority ownership last season to businessman George Gillett Jr.

GEM in February entered a support agreement with Robby Gordon, then revealed this month it had a side deal to purchase Gordon's race team at the end of this year. GEM is now suing Gordon, accusing him of being in breach of that contract as the team seeks to terminate the purchase promise.

The filing of that suit led to speculation that GEM has its sights set on buying another race team as part of its effort to expand to four cars.

Bill Davis' one-car team has a lucrative Toyota deal but is lacking the sponsorship needed to be competitive.

Michael Waltrip Racing, another struggling Toyota team, could also be a target. Waltrip has three cars, but only one has full-time sponsorship locked up for 2009.

Toyota Racing Development president Lee White has declined to discuss team contracts, but he recently said the automaker had room to add teams to its growing fleet. He added that an organization would not have to purchase or merge with an existing Toyota deal to get a contract with the automaker.

Dodge, meanwhile, is lagging beyond other manufacturers in the showroom and on the race track. It's the only one of the four NASCAR makes that failed to qualify for the Chase for the Sprint Cup playoff, even though Ryan Newman won the Daytona 500 in a Dodge and GEM driver Kasey Kahne posted two victories.

Still, Delahanty said Dodge has no plans to pull out of the Sprint Cup Series. The automaker recently said it would end its support of the third-tier Craftsman Truck Series.

"We are committed," he said. "We've got long-term contracts in place, not only with Gillett Evernham but with Penske Racing, with Petty and with Chip Ganassi Racing, so we're committed to the sport and I don't know how many times we have to repeat it."

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Permalink Reply by Bigzoom on September 17, 2008 at 2:37pm

NASCAR INSIDER

MERGERS, MERGERS EVERYWHERE.

Mergers are the talk all over NASCAR as sponsorship money becomes tighter and the divide between competitive organizations becomes larger. These deals have come into focus in recent weeks, with Gillett Evernham Motorsports rumored to be acquiring at least part of Bill Davis Racing and the resurgance of the rumor that won’t seem to die, linking Michael Waltrip Racing with Chip Ganassi Racing.

Almost two weeks ago GEM filed suit against Robby Gordon Motorsports to get out of a previous merger deal between the two. Word was, a better deal had come along that GEM wanted to pursue. That deal now seems to be Bill Davis Racing, whose owner has said he is willing to talk about possible acquisitions, or mergers.

Now, Dave Blaney, current driver of the #22 has said he is looking for a ride outside the organization. And the current status of their sponsorship (lack of it) for 2009 makes the team a very attractive target. From what I am hearing, the deal being put together would basically sell GEM the #22 Cup team (a move to secure top-35 points), and BDR would continue to operate with their Craftsman Truck Series teams, potentially adding a Nationwide team. A manufacturer swap for GEM seems unlikely and unnecessary.

BDR’s truck teams have had considerable success with Johnny Benson and Mike Skinner behind the wheel. In fact they recently added Doug Richert as Skinner’s crew chief and brought back Jeff Hensley to prepare Brian Scott for his transition into the organization.

The deal is a win win for both organizations. Bill Davis gets rid of a Cup team they have no hope of finding sponsorship for, and GEM gets the points to start a fourth team. No word on who might be in that ride, but Patrick Carpentier is now a free agent after just one season with the team.

On the other side of the spectrum is the deal that does not exist. Sporting News first reported the breakfast meeting between Cal Wells, Rob Kauffman, Chip Ganassi and Felix Sabates during the Daytona race weekend earlier this summer. Others are now pushing it despite the rumor not having any legs.

Here are some reasons why it is a bad idea and unlikely scenario. First, you have three teams at CGRFS, one completely unsponsored, and another with only half sponsorship. MWR is in the same situation. Merging two teams with sponsorship issues is clearly a bad business move. Pushing sponsorship is not the easiest thing in the world, and doing it for several teams is unrealistic (unless you’re Richard Childress Racing, but that is a different story).

In addition CGR’s ventures in other series make the deal difficult to understand. Operations for the entire organization (with the exception of a few key personnel) are based in Concord, not Indianapolis or Pittsburgh. Likewise MWR has a very clear corporate structure that would clash with Ganassi’s.

Beyond that is the large amount of real estate involved; CGR’s shop in Concord, MWR’s Raceworld USA in Cornelius, and other CGR assets in Indianapolis and Pittsburgh. Reconciling all of this under one roof would be difficult and costly.

Perhaps most obvious is the difference in manufacturers. These teams sign contracts that are not easy to get out of, as we saw when Bill Davis was sued by Dodge after switching to Toyota. While it sounds good to say, why don’t they just switch, it is just not that simple.

I can not tell you how many times I have heard from people in authority that this deal is not only untrue, but ridiculous. They ask, if a deal like this were to be discussed, why would they have done it in a crowded dining room, race weekend in Daytona Beach. Does not sound too logical. From what I have heard, this meeting was simply a courtesy (Cal Wells and Chip Ganassi are acquaintances) to help out motorsports newcomer Rob Kauffman. It is not at all uncommon for team leadership to have lunch dates and meetings with others around the industry. Unfortunately, Bob Margolis at Yahoo Sports and others are more interested in gossip, opinion and speculation (which is all this was when Sporting News “reported” on it) than news. None of them seem to grasp the close knit business relationships that exist.

Overall, these teams are not on top right now. Taking two struggling organizations and merging them into one large organization would only create more problems, and I would hope Chip Ganassi and Rob Kauffman (who is the president of a successful investment group) would be smart enough to see this.

As the season reaches the home stretch, plans for next season will begin to be finalized. While Silly Season is winding down, it is certainly not over and this is no more evident than on the business side of the sport.

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Permalink Reply by brian campbell on September 17, 2008 at 2:50pm

"We’re committed to these guys…I don’t know how many times we have to repeat it."i don't know how many times i have lied to these guys is what he is really trying to say.

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Permalink Reply by Bigzoom on September 17, 2008 at 3:02pm

IN THE PITS

GEM better off to keep the deal with Robby

Car owner/ driver Robby Gordon climbed back inside Nascar's Top 35, which guarantees an automatic position for the next race. If Gordon can remain in the Top 35 at the season's end it could make his team worth millions more.

GEM sued Robby to ge out of an agreement to purchase Gordon's team with speculation they were after a better deal at BDR or Ganassi Racing. The news will be damaging to GEM's case, certainly if it's true. GEM will likely have to agree to some type of settlement with Gordon if they continue without him.

When you look at the teams, buying Gordon's would be the better deal. Buying BDR will include more than a shop and team. BDR has been a development center for Toyota and it would costly making a switch to Dodge, or even more costly switching GEM to Toyota.

As for Ganassi Racing, sponsorship would likely be in place, but Juan Pablo Montoya's salary and Ganassi's real estate would come at a much higher price than Gordon's deal.

RGM offers a better deal. Gordon is sponsor savy and an easy sell, not to mention sponsors Menard's & Jim Beam would likely stay on board with Robby in a fully supported GEM team. Robby owns a solid piece of property and a fairly new shop. Gordon is already using GEM powerplants and with assistance could have a contending team. Gordon is always a threat when the Nascar schedule visits a road course and he's slowly earning a reputation of being a solid plate track driver.

It's no secret GEM wants to buy a 4th team. Dodge insists BDR is not the choice and Ganassi officials deny any dealing with GEM as well. It's already surfaced GEM did indeed have an agreement to purcahse Gordon's team and has filed suit claiming Gordon broke the agreement when he shop his team around after finalizing a deal with GEM. Gordon denied the claim and even says he plans to stand by the agreement. Somebody is not telling the truth and it's likely to surface soon who really is selling and who really was lying.

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