Despite detractors, Roger Penske believes NASCAR “is in great shape"
Before race fans get the impression that the NASCAR sky is falling, take another look.
Roger Penske, Owner Team Penske
Alexander Trienitz
Yes, attendance is down. Yes, ratings are down. Yes, there appears to be more real estate available for sale on certain cars in the garage.
But the blue chip teams are still thriving.
Still a good investment
In the last two days, two of NASCAR’s hottest drivers signed extensions with their teams. FedEx sang Denny Hamlin’s praises on Thursday after announcing a multi-year deal with Joe Gibbs Racing. On Friday morning, principals from Shell/Pennzoil extolled the benefits of the global business-to-business relationship with Roger Penske while confirming support for Joey Logano to the tune of a seven-year contract extension for the sponsor, driver and crew chief Todd Gordon.
“I was Super Bowl Chairman in 2006 in Detroit, and we had to put seats in to have 70,000,” Penske told motorsport.com. “Well, we have better than a Super Bowl every weekend. If you stack the social media today with the fan base, the sport is in good shape. I can tell you, the people like FedEx, Shell or Miller — the key companies — wouldn’t be investing if they didn’t see it develop a benefit.
“Today, there’s a lot more scrutiny on return on investment. There’s no question that these bigger companies look at that even closer because of their shareholders.”
Roger Penske applauds changes
Last season, Penske celebrated his 50th anniversary in racing. He has experienced the evolution of the sport from behind the wheel to the spotter’s stand — and everything in-between. Penske doesn’t believe NASCAR is stagnant. He applauds the industry for thinking outside the box this season by reinvigorating the points system once again and offering bonus points for distinct stages of a race.
“TV has pushed for that, which I think is good,” Penske said. “We need some changes. But it’s going to make racing throughout the whole race important. So if someone wants to tune in or tune out, they’re going to be able to see something that’s going to be very competitive.
“From my perspective, I think we’re rebalancing. I think we built tracks with too many seats. People are now connecting with their phones. They can sit with a driver in his car during the race. There’s different ways for them to connect. To me, after the financial crisis in 2007 and 2008, typically sports have taken somewhat of a back seat, because people don’t have the spendable income. What people are saying is, ‘Let’s go to one event,’ so maybe you can’t go twice to a track. That might have some impact from an attendance standpoint.'
Sponsorship is more than a sticker to Penske
Even Team Penske has seen a shift in sponsorship over the last decade. Despite Brad Keselowski winning the Cup title in 2012, long-time supporter Miller Brewing cut back its sponsorship slightly two years later.
Over the last three seasons, the duo of Keselowski and Logano has won 23-percent of all Cup races. Penske believes that performance is key to maintaining solid relationships with partners. Of the Team Penske sponsors in motorsports, whether in NASCAR, IndyCar or Australian Supercars, 25 of 38 enjoy a relationship with Penske outside of the race track. He insists a sponsorship “isn’t just a sticker (on the race car). It’s a real connection.”
“For me, I’m using (motorsports) as a tool, a common thread through our business to create our brand image — certainly to show integrity and transparency of our company — and of course, the best thing, is to build people. Then with this, we can give back to many things throughout our community.”
Penske was not pleased with the recent Wall Street Journal article citing differences of opinion within NASCAR’s founding France family. While NASCAR has endured its share of growing pains, similar challenges have affected the stick and ball sports as well.
“From my perspective, the sport is in great shape,” Penske said. “I hate to see articles when they’re talking about family and who says this and who doesn’t. I was on the board of ISC for a number of years, and I never saw more people in parallel and on the same position in many boards that I’ve sat on.
“We need different opinions. If you don’t have different opinions, you don’t go forward. I think we’re going to have a great season.”
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