More Just Wondering

Just Wondering... When will professional drag racing teams and sanctioning bodies finally understand that winning championships or setting new speed or ET records has little or nothing to do with acquiring and keeping corporate sponsorships? Don't think so? Then why didn't winning championships help ultra successful, winning team owners/racers like John Force, Alan Johnson, Don Schumacher or Richard Freeman (to cite just a few) in acquiring or keeping major corporate sponsorship? The only Force team to get a new full ride sponsor this year would be daughter Brittany's Top Fuel team and she accomplished that without a single NHRA Top Fuel race win to her credit!

Sponsors, especially the corporate variety, are "bottom line" organizations so sponsorships must deliver a return on investment either in sales or at least increased brand awareness. The drop in fan attendance in ALL forms of motorsports and the abysmal Nielsen ratings for NHRA drag racing are two major factors that keep racers, tracks and even the NHRA from getting and keeping major sponsors.

Just Wondering... Is the current NHRA 24-race National event schedule simply too expensive and too hard for many of NHRA's pro teams? The 2015 schedule includes several stretches where the teams race three and four times a month and that stresses the cars, crews and budgets to the breaking point. Maybe if there were fewer events, each one would be more special for the fans too, meaning an increase in attendance. 

Just Wondering... Who decided to "stonewall" the press and the NHRA membership regarding NHRA President Tom Compton's disappearance? Although I believe that Mr. Compton made the decision to say nothing publically about his absence, I doubt anyone realized how giving out no information has damaged both Tom's and the NHRA's reputation and credibility.

Just Wondering... NHRA fan and racer attendance is down at most of their National event venues and it has reached the point that having just 16-18 pro cars entered for a 16-car field is the norm. The question is when will the current NHRA management, formerly led by Tom Compton and now by Peter Clifford, make some significant changes to try to avert what is rapidly becoming a crisis situation?

Just Wondering... Shouldn't the major drag racing sanctioning organizations be spending a lot more time and effort catering to spectators and sponsors and a little less on catering to the racers and themselves? If they want to recapture their fan base and move their TV Nielsen ratings they had better work on bringing back and entertaining the fans and less catering to the race teams and their owners.

Just Wondering... Did you know that despite the sponsors he's acquired this year -- Peak, Monster and Lucas Oil being the main ones -- John Force says his racing organization is currently only 80-85% funded. Which means he is funding the remaining 20% of his 2015 team's budgets out of pocket! Unsustainable.