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Quote:
Originally Posted by downtowndeco
IRL 2008 TV Ratings
Ovals
Homestead .8
Motegi .23
Kansas .66
Indy 4.5
Milwaukee .6
Texas .8
Iowa 1.1
Richmond .9
Nashville .5
Kentucky .43
Average with Indy: 1.05
Average without Indy: .68
Street/Road Circuits
St Pete .4
(Long Beach .8)
Watkins Glen 1.0
Mid Ohio 1.3
Edmonton (can't find ratings)
Sonoma .41
Average: .78 (excluding Edmonton)
and that's 9 of 16 races YTD down
so is it me or reality you have on ignore
Seriously? When there's only one domestic open wheel series to follow, it better have better attendance than years past.Quote:
Originally Posted by downtowndeco
Ratings? If they were that good then ICS would have stayed with ABC/ESPN for 2009.
Do multiple winners equate to exciting races? Its still the same old mega teams of Penske and TCGR with AGR in the background. Even they are struggling financially.
Is racing in Iowa and bullring ovals is your idea of diversity? Legacy places like Surfers, Laguna Seca, Road America, Road Atlanta, Cleveland, Fontana and Michigan are mine.
Did I say I wanted CART/CCWS? IRL? I'm looking for a product that neither CCWS or the IRL could deliver as a standalone series in the past several years. A combination of the best of both, not a continuation of "IRL think."
They add a few more right turn events and you think its a perfect product? Get some coffee, take a step back and rethink your perspective just like how Dr. Jack nailed it.
We also have seen what else happens next, with this deal to put most IRL races on VS. The jury is out, way out, on this decision. We'll have to wait and see how VS. handles this, not only in coverage but promotion.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chaparral66
after letting the Vs deal settle a couple weeks I'm confident as an established fan we are going to enjoy a improved product for a couple three years
my problem is i don't think rating are going to increase... or increase to a level that will warrant contiued extended coverage and promotion and in the end it will end up status quo at best...
The key to Versus' success is how the network activates and incorporates this Indycar deal into their strategic growth. The Australia race will be a key component if you consider their reach into corporate global due to their America's Cup coverage.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken
Unfortunately, the IRL doesn't bring the breath of excitement to brand sponsorship as open wheel used to do.
The open wheel fragmentation has left deep scar tissue in the business community. Many companies refuse to endorse the TG mindset of building a series around his beloved Indy and the young lady driver with an attitude. They are looking for series branding and promotion of all the drivers.
They reportedly bring in series sponsors at bargain basement budgets which undermines what the teams need to survive. Why spend a few $mil when they can be an ICS associate for peanuts. I'd rather see these series associates be primary and secondary sponsors on race cars as part of an all inclusive package. Similar to the recent McDonalds deal in NHLR and CCWS.
Corporate sponsorhip is taking another turn for the worst. Looking for the best bang for the buck and ICS can't deliver.
Its time the participants at all levels rethink their survival strategy. Dwelling on the past isn't going to grow interest in open wheel either.
The series needs to get involved in the industries they rely on for sponsorship. Most of the players in apparel and accessories were in Las Vegas this week.
http://www.motorsportforums.com/foru...d.php?t=129121
The IRL should have been on the main floor along side the IZOD display with as many drivers in tow as possible. There were plenty of shoe manufacturers there who would have loved to meet Mr. Dancing Shoes Helio and discussed a branding strategy with Penske. It doesn't take to many of those deals to underwrite a campaign and provide advertising revenue for the TV broadcast.
The roots of most auto racing - especially AOWR goes back to wealthy individuals spending money to have fun with nice cars. In the early days sponsorships were mostly from individuals who liked cars and put their company's name on the car for the heck of it (more or less).
Corporate sponsorship for racing only flourished when tobacco and alcohol had no other viable outlets for advertising and given the regulatory environment, I do not think those companies assessed their sponsorships all that closely.....
The bottom line is that we are seem to be pining for the days of flush sponsorship as though that is the norm when, in fact, the days of big sponsors were very short....
The "norm" in AOWR has been sponsorship by racing fans with varying degrees of money that is augmented by sponsorship from allied industries and various products that had no otehr way of advertising.
Instead of figuring out how to increase sponsorship, the IRL needs to learn how to live with less and how to attract and keep happy folks like Gerry Forsythe, Carl Russo, and Marty Roth who for the most part fund their racing out of pocket. It also need to figure out a formula that allows these guys to have fun, have a chance of showing well, strut their egos, and do it all for a fairly "reasonable" and stable amount of money.....
We do not necessarily need manufacturers as most of the history of the sport has been devoid of manufacturers - it is only the last 15 year or so that AOWR has come to be dominated by manufacturers and we can all see where that has gotten us......
Simple, respectable, and interesting is the key to the future of AOWR.....
I'm not sure what Honda's plans are for the ICS, but I see that they are moving up to the P1 class in the ALMS.
The waters are still murky. Remember too that TG provided the free chassis/engine leases this year for the ex-CC teams and without the necessary budget/funding, are they still going to remain afloat? Especially if the ROI in all likelihood will be less because of the TV deal. For all we know, Sonoma was PCM's swansong and they have gone from series to series selling off used equipment to advance up the next year.
What happens to Atlantic? KK and GF again said they were funding it for this year but where does it go when that deal runs out? Rumors have it IMSA want it but no deal is in place beyond this year.
And an opinion from my front. There's almost zero chance of TG moving up the debut of the new car from 2011. But, if he was really interested in growing the series, wouldn't he want to do anything in his power to get rid of the current ugly cars rather than coincide the debut of the new one with the 100th anniversary? It just seems risky to me that the new car, if it has issues, will be featured at the biggest event.
The fans are still at a stalemate too. The old IRL fans are po'd b/c their "vision" is morphing into what the old CC model was. Yet the CCF crew are not jumping aboard the series because their hatred burns deep and eternally for TG and the split, and they don't get over it.
At the time of the unification, I said the series should try to reach out to its fanbase first, and also attempt to market itself in a way that has far-reaching effects beyond the niche group which it currently falls in. Without fans you don't have a series and judging by the current product, and the new TV deal, that number is dwindling...
Just my .02. It will be interesting to see the attitudes and plans the teams have for down the road at Chicagoland next week.
WIth the new rules you can kiss that good-bye, but as all "top" racing series, have become mediocre, there actually is no high standard to out-do; therefore failure to succeed illuminates how poor the product is.Quote:
Originally Posted by jimispeed
What happens next?
Well, it's a good question that will take time to answer.
Versus is on the surface a bad deal, but it could well turn out to be a big positive for Indycar. Comcast is very intent on using Versus to kick ESPN in the nuts, so if Comcast gets serious about this, and Indycar is equally serious in producing a good product, great racing and of course good quality TV broadcasting, than Versus could do for Indycar what ESPN did for NASCAR in the '90s. It's a gamble for sure, but considering the total garbage of ESPN promotion and broadcast quality, it was well-deserved to ditch them. The h*ll with the Mouse.
The Atlantics will probably survive, as I figure IMSA will move from sanctioning them to buying them, or at least co-owning with Forsythe. The IMSA teams have cash right now, and the prize money for the series is good enough to make a good living for those guys. It'll make it.
Certainly, the overall state of the sport is still a big problem - because merger or not things really haven't improved that much. It wasn't so much a merger as Kalkhoven selling out what was left of CC and its fans - a fact that I, and a large number of OW fans, hate his guts. What the IRL needs is to get out there and start promoting, showing off, pushing hard. The Dallara needs to go ASAP, waiting until 2011 is just going to do more damage to an already dented series. The CC guys will not support anything with Tony George anywhere near it, and the IRL guys range from unhappy about the merger to downright disgusted. See T***** to get the point.