TG tried to buy Champ Car (again)

[nrc]

There's a blurb on the Autoweek with details of the "unification" meeting Roger Penske set up on the Autoweek page. The lemmings would have you believe this was RP's doing and that Tony was a disinterested bystander. Not so.



After an initial meeting between Champ Car honchos and Roger Penske, who took the job of intermediary, the two sides met aboard Penske's jet at the airport in Toronto after the Champ Car race there July 11: Penske, Champ Car owners Gerald Forsythe, Paul Gentilozzi and Kevin Kalkhoven, and Craig Brighton, general counsel for Indianapolis Motor Speedway, representing IRL boss Tony George.

Brighton traveled with the task of exploring how much it might take to "merge'' by writing Champ Car a check. The Champ Car trio made its baseline clear at the start: 50-50 ownership and control, and a hired CEO to run things (as opposed to George).

That firm position cooled things quickly. With greetings and small talk, the meeting lasted no more than 20 minutes.
http://www.autoweek.com/news.cms?newsId=100774

Of course Tony George has never been willing to consider shared ownership. His goal from the start has been control of the sport. He still thinks he's in the catbird seat and he only needs to write a check. It would seem that OWRS are confident enough in their prospects to take a hardline position and stick to it.

[RTKar]

"It would seem that OWRS are confident enough in their prospects to take a hardline position and stick to it."


:thumbup:

[FanofMario]

I love those three Amigos! :) The audacity to ask for 50/50 just tears me up! And gutless FTG couldn't even come himself---how transparent was that?
How shakey must the EARL be and how does Roger feel being in bed with such a jerk? :rolleyes:

[dando]

Smells like desperation to me. :thumbup:

-Kevin

[rabbit]

Looks like he brought the wrong currency again.

Sorry TG, your yen is worthless here. :gomer:

[Lizzerd]

The first time I read that this afternoon, I almost fell out of my chair.


Brighton traveled with the task of exploring how much it might take to "merge'' by writing Champ Car a check.

"Merge" in TG's dictionary is synonymous with "absorbtion".

All together now... "Just Say NO to the irl, Boy George, and any OW racing series that is hell bent on having him in charge and its HQ at 16th and Georgetown!"

Can I hear an amen?

[Dave99]

His goal from the start has been control of the sport. He still thinks he's in the catbird seat and he only needs to write a check.
So what's the deal? Tony's no longer happy with the ball he took home with him in 95?. He's such a chump.

[rocket]

I thought I read somewhere that Michal Andretti was spewing about how CC did not want to merge with the earl and he couldn't understand why. This must have been what he was talking about. Obviously he has a lousy business vocabulary, because this would be a buyout not a merger. KK, GF, and PG did not spend all of that money to just keep it afloat a little longer. here was a plan in place.

Michael A is an idiot, I never have liked him and I never will.

If TG or anyone else for that matter were interested in combining the two series they should have started talking near the end of last season, when things were starting to happen. Instead of just assuming this would fall into his or their lap, and he would be the king. He may still be the king....of idiots and fools.

I hate people that think they can just open a checkbook and make everything OK. That action in itself shows you are afraid to face the music.

[Kiwifan]

Chump? YES, Champ? NO and long may that last. I would be more than happy if we kept our distance from that man. :mad:

Rusty.

[Skater_36]

Smells like desperation to me. :thumbup:

-Kevin

I agree! The smartest guy involved with the IRL (Penske) has tried on several occasions to fix the mess that Tony George has created. Penske and Ganassi can see that the manufacturer money won't last forever ( a point lost on Michael Andretti) and when it goes away, the IRL will be on VERY shakey ground. With terrible TV ratings and little fan(paying fans are even scarcer) turnout it will be difficult to find sponsors to pick up the tab for Tonys hobby.

[mueber]

I agree! The smartest guy involved with the IRL (Penske) has tried on several occasions to fix the mess that Tony George has created. Penske and Ganassi can see that the manufacturer money won't last forever ( a point lost on Michael Andretti) and when it goes away, the IRL will be on VERY shakey ground. With terrible TV ratings and little fan(paying fans are even scarcer) turnout it will be difficult to find sponsors to pick up the tab for Tonys hobby.

Roger Penske is unscrupulous, greedy, selfish, and hypocritical, but Roger Penske is not smart. If he were, he would be working to destroy Tony George instead placating him.

[Madmaxfan2]

Roger Penske is unscrupulous, greedy, selfish, and hypocritical, but Roger Penske is not smart. If he were, he would be working to destroy Tony George instead placating him.

I would not call Roger dumb, but all the Cart owners use other peoples money, like Marbaro, to fund their teams and follow were the money goes. TG understood that part of the equation. But, if the fans do not follow, the business cases eventually fall apart. That is why the desperation is starting to set in at the IRL.

[Fenster]

It would be a mistake to think that Roger Penske isn't smart. He may be a lot of things, but dumb is not one of them. There is a reason he's doing what he's doing. It's only a question of motives. RP never makes a move that won't benefit himself first. There's no doubt that a merger would benefit him, as well as anyone (team) who survives it (merged resources, bigger pool of cash, etc.).

If he can get OWRS to give in on TG's terms, then the bet he made years ago (when he joined TG) was the right one. If OWRS wins out in this thing, RP's poker hand may not be looking so good. I believe it's that simple.

We all know that the IRL isn't a flourishing series. OWRS appears to be gaining some momentum. I'm not sure the reality of the situations, however. Both are vulnerable. IRL more so, I believe. OWRS seems to be building on much more stability/strong business relationship/partnerships. Truthfully, I think RP knows that his/IRL's success depends highly on Honda and Toyota. They are the linch-pin that is keeping that series alive. And maybe he's not sure that they're sticking around much longer. Look at their history and it will tell you what they are capable off ('scorched Earth' as many have pointed out).

[JLMannin]

So, I wonder if Kalkoven and Forsythe made a counter offer to "merge" IMS corp into Champcar?

[TravelGal]

Now it can be told? The article admits this happened two months ago. Shows how desperate the writers are for controversy. Nevertheless, always great to read all these good posts.

And here's an AMEN for Lizzerd!

[Ozarkian]

Amen, Lizzerd, and amen, rocket. FTG's showing his colors again as "inherited wealth." He just doesn't get it.

[FCYTravis]

Tony thought his yen could buy anything. He thought the Three Amigos were just like him, a pack of money-grubbing, power-hungry jagoffs who could be bought off by anyone or anything.

He was wrong.

You see Tony, there are some things greater than money. Things you've forgotten, like tradition, heritage, values, honesty and FANS.

Kevin, Gerry and Paul bought Champ Car because they want all those things to live on. They want the greatest open-wheel series in American history to once again reach the pinnacle of motorsports success.

Not because they wanted to make a quick buck by selling out to the demented likes of Tonee Gorge.

:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

Thanks, Kevin, Gerry and Paul. You know the true spirit of racing.

[pchall]

Amen, Lizzerd, and amen, rocket. FTG's showing his colors again as "inherited wealth." He just doesn't get it.

That's why we used to tag him as the Lucky Sp*rm at SpeedNet: can't think much when you're only a cell and a flagella.
;)

[SteveH]

TG's running scared. Champ Car is going to make it. His only way to avoid public ridicule once Champ Car gets fully back on its feet, is to buy it off and bury his biggest embarassment.

When you've got more money than brains, you tend to think all your problems will only get solved by writing checks. Keep writing them Tony, because you have plenty of problems ahead of you.

[Ziggy]

Till 2003, Tony didnt have any "Yen" to spend. It came out of Terre Haute First National Bank. He had to get four or so co-signers on the withdrawl ticket to boot.... Now he found a couple of suckers to finance the "Vision" (version 6.1) for a time, but forgot the story of the big wooden horse soon to be revived by Tinseltown.

He has gone down the same slippery slope that the CART BOD's did when they went public. Relying on someone else to fund the entire series. There is no "real value" to the IRL. Why? No fans. Hootenpender can rant about eyeballs all he wants. Those are real gaps in those grandstands, real BIG GAPS! Those zero's on the left side of the ratings numbers tell a tale of woe as well. The "League" will only be able to sham the Japanese for so long, for they really do know about "return on investment". Im sure the ratings and attendance figures have been brought up in a place where you have to remove your shoes before you step into the room..... The Indy 500 with all it's heritage and tradition has been turned into a laughing stock, the likes of which only the hard core chuggers fail to grasp.

10 days
less than 33 starters
no name wankers
no bumping (wow, what a glued to your seat format that turns out to be when there is no bumping. To quote Jerk Aroot and Phat Paul, "Can you feel the tension, the drama, check out the tata's on Robbie's girlfriend")
A stock car driver sits in a car and its talked about in print for THREE days

How much more Saving can Mumbles do? Merge or Splurge?

Make him pay, then run him out of town on a hot rail. Go back to running a tacky bar in Terre Haute you racing wanna be.

[Ozarkian]

That's why we used to tag him as the Lucky Sp*rm at SpeedNet: can't think much when you're only a cell and a flagella.
;)

Yep. What's that old saying, "He was born on third base and thinks he hit a triple ..."?

FTG's hubris may have caused him to squander his last, best chance to settle the "war" on terms somewhat favorable to him. OWRS is a rising star and is avoiding many of the mistakes historically made by CART management, while the EARL is at its height (such as it is) by willingly making those same mistakes. To my mind, doing a deal this year would be the sensible thing for FTG, while he and his handlers still have all of the balls they're juggling in the air (the interests of ex-CART team owners, Honda, Toyota, Chevy, ISC/France family, Bernie, the Hulman/George family trust beneficiaries, etc.). That's a lot of interests to keep "in the air," so to speak, and I don't think FTG is that good a juggler. But, as inherited wealth, he just doesn't get it.

It will be fun to see which of these interests bites him first, and then as the whole thing comes tumbling down and his sisters throw his butt out.

[pchall]

Y...while he and his handlers still have all of the balls they're juggling in the air (

Arrghhh! I'm not going to sleep well tonight if that image is still in my head!
:eek:

[Redwing]

Doesn't leave Tony enough money to buy every fan he'll need to fill up those seats. Maybe Honda and Toyota could give everyone a free car.

[Skater_36]

Roger Penske is unscrupulous, greedy, selfish, and hypocritical, but Roger Penske is not smart. If he were, he would be working to destroy Tony George instead placating him.

I only said that Penske was the smartest guy involved with the IRL so it's a relative term. ;) Compare Penske to someone like Tony George and he comes off as a genius.

Seriously though, I believe that Penske see's the writing on the wall. Without a reconcilliation of the split the manufacturers money will go away and it will be back to square one for the IRL. CCWS will be gaining momentum when the IRL gets the rug pulled out from under it.

[Ozarkian]

Arrghhh! I'm not going to sleep well tonight if that image is still in my head!
:eek:

Thought about changing it after hitting the submit button - then I thought "NAAAAAAAAAA." :gomer:

Sorry about the visual, though.