2017 VASC Silly Season

[mceci1]

Originally Posted by Umai Naa

That's just it, really.

Anybody else thinking of purchasing a REC, needs to have a very good reason to. They need to submit a strong business case for wanting one, that also shows they have the resources to service the REC, as well as proof of ongoing sustainability.

Yet, LDM have two, and pretty much operate on a round-by-round basis. If SC really wanted to, they could install somebody in the team to sort the finances out and make it viable again. But I guess when you bite the hand that feeds you by taking them to court, to keep said RECs, and then have the hide to hit them up for damages... what hope have you got?

I agree and disagree. LDM is becoming a joke, and I did have some support but they aren't willing to change. There was a major NASCAR team who along with Penske two years ago looking at joining two cars, they couldn't because no REC's were available. By removing a team it damages reputation, by keeping them it prevents good teams from coming. What do V8s do in this case. I think it was Richard Petty who was really interested, never went ahead. By putting more REC's available for teams who are seriously interested it will help. And having the likes of Roland Dane, Tim Edwards (given his background), Roger Penske and Richard Petty in the sport will bring interest from other manufacturers too, especially in the case of Petty and Penske. The other thing is that we need the smaller people to keep it going to. Through smaller teams it keeps small interest groups attracted knowing that they could get in, big teams attract big teams. It needs to be balanced.

[PS2244]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

You might have one thing right there, the rest is (incorrect) guessing.

A driver's sponsors very rarely want to stay on for another pilot. I notice for example that Mr Oaklands has been conspicuous by his absence on social media regarding his support. Will that support remain for whoever Plan C might offer up? When you read what he wanted to do, to support the young kid, it seems unlikely.

There are drivers around with partial budgets. The question is, can multiple drivers be used in a single entry across the year. There was a precedent set last year when Mr Russell escaped Erebus for the codrive in the enduros at LDM. In theory it shouldnt have been allowed to happen, Mr Russell nominated at the start of the season and all that. Lack of funding is not usually a force majeure condition.

If you had 3 blokes (or blokettes) with $500k in backing each, could they each drive 13 or 14 or 15 races each (including AGP & Enduros) and not upset the applecart?

There is a rule in F1 for example that a 2 car team can have no more than 4 pilots in a year, to hunt away selling rides across the year. Dont recall it in the VASA rulebook, yet the 2017 edition isnt up yet.

The 3 fellas I am thinking of all ran main game last season at some stage, and presumably each qualify for a SuperLicence

I get what you mean, but all I've heard so far is Andre is going to get the gig full time the other two are out of the equation Andre wasn't that far off of Matt in terms of funding but I agree Oakland's and cavalier homes will probably leave

[mceci1]

Originally Posted by Tourer

Good thing that CAMS have stuck to the plan with this one. If I was running a team in the main game, I'd be a bit relieved that this guy wasn't out there to deliver a repeat of his Sandown efforts.

Giving dispensation to Mr Rulio is one thing and could be argued for / against but to do so for Mr Chadha after his Sandown head explosion (and seeming inability to accept afterwards that he'd stuffed up) would be one step too far IMHO.

He may well end up being a reasonable race driver but after that Sandown mess, he really needs to show a level of maturity and competency to jump into the main game.

Don't know how this didn't get sorted before the season launch - maybe it was a question of the deal coming together late and timelines not matching up?

Another name needs to be added to that list, Jack Le Brocq. His performance at Sandown last year was terrible for a front runner, Hazlewood and then fencing Douglas. Chadha only did it once and it was a big stuff up but he learnt I think, Le Brocq and people like that wont, same as SVG too aggressive, at least though SVG will admit he is wrong and apologise. I used to be a fan of Jack, but I have lost a lot of respect after his Sandown incidents.

[PS2244]

Originally Posted by mceci1

Another name needs to be added to that list, Jack Le Brocq. His performance at Sandown last year was terrible for a front runner, Hazlewood and then fencing Douglas. Chadha only did it once and it was a big stuff up but he learnt I think, Le Brocq and people like that wont, same as SVG too aggressive, at least though SVG will admit he is wrong and apologise. I used to be a fan of Jack, but I have lost a lot of respect after his Sandown incidents.

Yeah I lost all respect for him when he bashed Chahda after only hours ago he had spun out the leader of the race on the final lap with a completely amateurish manuever

[Umai Naa]

Mr Chadha's incident at Sandown was one of many over the season, that left some scratching their heads. At one stage, Andrew Jones stepped in, to offer advice on racecraft, etc.

Having said that, I don't fully agree that the Sandown take-off was entirely his fault. But I do agree that he shouldn't be competing in the maingame, and neither should Mr Rullo at this stage. Long gone are the days where the likes of young guns such as Lowndes, S. Richards, Tander etc were plucked straight out of Formula Ford, and offered paid drives in the big league.

The gap between '90s era FF and touring cars, both in money and talent depth was probably smaller than DVS and the maingame. One season, mid-rear of the pack in DVS isn't sufficient experience. Even guys like Waters and Davies, who've run at the pointy end in recent years, have struggled with the transition. They've had plenty of national level tin-top experience. Championship wins, too.

I feel like drivers such as Aaren Russell, the Gracie/SdS thing, and perhaps Shae Davies if you will, have set a poor precedent of being totally out of their depth, but there because the money allowed them to be.

Are we coming to a point where SC needs to place a bit of emphasis on ensuring a quality grid?

[racer69]

Originally Posted by James Warburton

We need to review the Superlicense because there is self-interest and the points are way too skewed towards Formula 4

The hypocrisy of this statement from the Supercars CEO, accusing another body of "self-interest" when Supercars have done nothing but act in their own self-interest ever since 1997, and during Mr Warburton's reign.

Just a ridiculous comment....but i guess it's a story emanating from their own Supercars website...

http://www.supercars.com/news/champi...-superlicense/

Originally Posted by Umai Naa

Are we coming to a point where SC needs to place a bit of emphasis on ensuring a quality grid?

Is the money out there to support this?

The way they've set the series up currently with all the costs involved, it pretty much requires drivers with a budget these days to ensure a grid. Is there enough drivers out there 'up to standard' with the budget in their pockets to match?

[Mixer]

Originally Posted by racer69

The hypocrisy of this statement from the Supercars CEO, accusing another body of "self-interest" when Supercars have done nothing but act in their own self-interest ever since 1997, and during Mr Warburton's reign.?

Supercars are a commercial body.

CAMS are an ASN and bound by rules that should prevent exactly this sort of bias. Plus they should not have ever owned a category.

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[Umai Naa]

Originally Posted by racer69

Is the money out there to support this?

The way they've set the series up currently with all the costs involved, it pretty much requires drivers with a budget these days to ensure a grid. Is there enough drivers out there 'up to standard' with the budget in their pockets to match?

Could SC source suitably-licensed and experienced pilots, and cover their income and expenses? Then it's up to the teams to pitch that driver's marketability to the potential sponsors, to source the budget to race.

[Mixer]

https://autoaction.com.au/2017/02/09...a-superlicence

This I support.

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[Compromised]

Originally Posted by Umai Naa

Could SC source suitably-licensed and experienced pilots, and cover their income and expenses? Then it's up to the teams to pitch that driver's marketability to the potential sponsors, to source the budget to race.

Only problem is the current driver contracts - in my opinion, way too high. You'd never hear anyone say SC's rivals footy in terms of popularity/TV ratings/money etc, yet their stars are on similar coin. You could argue it's danger pay, but footy isn't that far behind in those terms

[Umai Naa]

Earnings haven't been mentioned for a while, but there wouldn't be too many up around $1mil anymore.

[Mixer]

Originally Posted by Compromised

Only problem is the current driver contracts - in my opinion, way too high. You'd never hear anyone say SC's rivals footy in terms of popularity/TV ratings/money etc, yet their stars are on similar coin. You could argue it's danger pay, but footy isn't that far behind in those terms

This is utterly false. Base AFL wage is $300k with the stars earning in excess of $1m plus endorsements. I would suggest there is not a single driver earning that much anymore.

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[chavez]

Originally Posted by Compromised

Only problem is the current driver contracts - in my opinion, way too high. You'd never hear anyone say SC's rivals footy in terms of popularity/TV ratings/money etc, yet their stars are on similar coin. You could argue it's danger pay, but footy isn't that far behind in those terms

Supercar drivers are usually far betters ambassadors for their team's sponsors than the ball sport players. For a start there is only a couple of drivers per team, so the spotlight is on you to perform in the media - many footballers rarely front the camera at all.

[chavez]

Originally Posted by Mixer

This is utterly false. Base AFL wage is $300k with the stars earning in excess of $1m plus endorsements. I would suggest there is not a single driver earning that much anymore.

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So Lowndes killed the market for everyone?

[Driver TBA]

Originally Posted by Mixer

This is utterly false. Base AFL wage is $300k
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$300K would be the average wage over the entire league.
Base wage for a first year rookie is about $70K plus match payments of around $3K if he gets a seniors call up.



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[Mixer]

Originally Posted by Driver TBA

$300K would be the average wage over the entire league.
Base wage for a first year rookie is about $70K plus match payments of around $3K if he gets a seniors call up.



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You are right. $300k for a guy who plays actual football every week. Still the salary cap of $10m per team would pay the entire Supercars field wages.

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[Umai Naa]

Originally Posted by chavez

So Lowndes killed the market for everyone?

Lowndes, Will Davison and James Courtney.

[Compromised]

Originally Posted by Umai Naa

Earnings haven't been mentioned for a while, but there wouldn't be too many up around $1mil anymore.

Yes not equal but Supercars is not the equal of football either (in financial/ratings/reach terms).

[Driver TBA]

Originally Posted by Mixer

You are right. $300k for a guy who plays actual football every week. Still the salary cap of $10m per team would pay the entire Supercars field wages.

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Plenty of guys earning under $200K who are in a teams best 22, but I do get your point. I reckon the 10 million would cover not only all drivers, but probably codrivers too.

With plenty of change to run LDM competitively.

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[mayhem]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

The 3 fellas I am thinking of all ran main game last season at some stage, and presumably each qualify for a SuperLicence

All of those three might have a little more of a bargaining chip now that the Chadha deal has fallen over. That is of course, if any/all three of those blokes are still interested in the drive, and I'm not sure they are...

[mceci1]

Originally Posted by Umai Naa

Lowndes, Will Davison and James Courtney.

How

[scr]

Originally Posted by mayhem

All of those three might have a little more of a bargaining chip now that the Chadha deal has fallen over. That is of course, if any/all three of those blokes are still interested in the drive, and I'm not sure they are...

Would anyone want to drive for LDM right now? A competitive co drive would be a much better option.

[Umai Naa]

Originally Posted by mceci1

How

At various stages all three commanded yearly salaries, circa $1M.

[Umai Naa]

Originally Posted by scr

Would anyone want to drive for LDM right now? A competitive co drive would be a much better option.

That's just it.

They're not desirable seats. Even drivers with budgets that could probably get themselves a fair way into the season don't want to be there.

Better off doing a deal for an enduro slot, and go play in Carrera Cup, Super2, AusGT, or something to keep match-fit.

[GTRMagic]