I'm obviously not one to tell any company where they should advertize. But these sponsors who bail out on the independent teams for the Top dogs IMO Sucks! It's like they use these guys to get familiar with the sport, then just say SEE YA!

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Shift for Brains!!!!

Losing a sponsor to another team is like losing a girlfriend to a close friend. It hurts....I have stood next to kenny Bernstein and listened to him as he told me that whatever sponsor I bring thru those gates will be his if I do not take care of business @ the highest level of return. He was very serious about taking your sponsor away from you........

I think what happens is once they get involved with an independent team such as Baca's, they see the true value of marketing through NHRA. Then, as they attend more and more races they see how much of a draw the JFR's, DSR's, etc. are, and they want to move over there - especially if they can do it for less money, which is often the case.

What they fail to see (POTENTIAL SPONSORS, PLEASE PAY ATTENTION) is that a large percentage of NHRA fans look at their product more closely when they choose to support a team like Baca's, or Wilkerson's, or Creasy's, etc. Personally, I'm more interested in the company, organization, etc. that sponsors a low-buck team than one who puts a small sticker on a big-buck team car.

I think we all agree that if Dan Olson doesn't get the cost of racing under control we're in trouble. But I'd like to add that if NHRA doesn't get involved with the big-buck teams taking all the sponsors away from the under-funded teams, we're going to be in even bigger trouble. I understand business is business, but as a fan it's slowly but surely killing the car counts and eliminating the low-buck racers.

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Gordon 'Flaps' Carlon
Work the solution, not the problem.

Gordon... I agree w/ what you are saying but did you know that the average John Force fan does not even know who David Baca is or what class does Wilkerson compete in.....Fans are just that...They have a million other interests and they spend their money on the most successful personality they see on T.V.
Most people here are not spending alot of capital on merchandise or supporting their favorite driver.
Who here buys Castrol oil because of J. Force? Not me? Who buys Miller lite beer because of Dixon's old sponsor or Budweiser because of Brandon?
Most educated ( formal or street) people will not be free spenders in the height of their excitement @ a national event.
Alot of teams that I have worked for have and will accept a less than needed amount of funding just to have some support which hurts them in the long run.
They will ask for 1.5 million and be happy w/ $600 k. They short change themselves. Mach 1 knew exactly what they were doing as alot of other companies w/ big marketing budgets. Budweiser spends .60 cents on every dollar just for marketing.
Teams need to run their operations like a business. Look @ Wilkerson...he seems to not run well but that is far from the public is seeing. He does not go negative in the accounting side of his ledger.
Look @ the last race w/ Dixon....weak but that was smart business. Why tear up a bunch of stuff when next year is questionable.
They only hurt spark plugs @ the Finals and probably broke even. The 'Snake' is the most 'balanced' owner out there.....later

Terry,

I know it makes more sense for a sponsor to pay less for more exposure, which is essentially what we're talking about here. It's all about ROI and a small sticker on each side of all the JFR Funny Cars and (probably) two Super Comp cars will more than likely get a lot more bang for their buck than being the primary paint on Baca's Top Fuel car.

But to answer your question: Yes, I used to buy Miller Lite because they sponsored Larry Dixon - not any more. And no, I won't drink Budweiser. I tried (and ctually liked) Herman Joseph's years ago when they sponsored an Alcohol Funny Car (the racer's name is escaing me at the moment.). I buy Lucas Oil products because of Forrest's support of Drag Racing (I/NHRA). I log onto all the .com's that show up on the side of race cars, and if it's something I can use, I normally do. I could go on and on.

Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I am personally more apt to support a company who is helping a low buck team compete at the national level before I'll buy Castrol Motor Oil.

As for the team's bottom line - that isn't my responsibility. They have to race within their means. I always root for the low-buck guys who successfully race within their means - Dale Creasy, Jr., as an example. What I'm saying is that their means become less and less when sponsors pull out to jump on a bigger teams bandwagon.

And again I say, I understand the business decision that leads to these circumstances, I simply don't like them and feel they're a detriment to the growth of our great sport.

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Gordon 'Flaps' Carlon
Work the solution, not the problem.

The distasteful thing to me is the fact that these sponsors will put the smaller teams on the track, while they simply improve a larger team's owner's lifestyle. It is certainly the sponsors' right to decide where their money is best spent, but it is nice to see when a sponsor goes to a low buck team that you just know is using every dollar, and then some, at the track. Think about how many teams would not be out there if it were not for Evan Knoll, Forest Lucas and some of the other sponsors that do a great job of spreading their money around to some of the low buck teams. Like I said, Mach 1 can put its money where ever it wishes, and it well may be a great marketing move for them, but John Force's operation will not change one iota with these additional dollars, Baca is parked without them.

Very well said Aaron.

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Gordon 'Flaps' Carlon
Work the solution, not the problem.

Your right Aaron, but if you owned Mach1 which would you rather do?

Spend $1.5m to sponsor David Baca
or
Spend $500k to sponsor JFR and have signage on 6 cars and get more exposure for less money. Its a no brainer business wise. I dont like it, but I cant blame the company.

Never said I thought it was a bad business decision. In fact it may be a great one, though I am not sure how well their decals will show up amongst the fifty others that are already there and I doubt their name will stand out nearly as well when Force regurgitates all the sponsors after a run. However, if they do their own marketing playing up that they are a sponsor of John Force's funny cars, they will be much better off. Still, my point is that because their $$$ are going to JFR, Baca is parked and Force's program won't change one bit. As a fan and a racer, I wish the money went to someone who really needed it. As a business owner, I fully understand the move.

Terry, I'm not sure what class you're in but KB is right. If you don't go all out for your sponsor they will either get out of the sport entirely or find another team that they believe will give them a better return.

This is not to say Baca did anything wrong. Sometimes you can do the best you can with the dollars you get and it's still never enough. Luck and timing also plays a roll in this as well.

Sadly, other teams will always be trying to pull the rug right out from under your feet. I had a guy that raced a stock car tell me to my face at a car show say he tried to steal my sponsor, And I know of several others that have tried as well. That's why I don't let up for nothing in coming up with new ways to get the car seen.