Mark Mc Ardle just said what a lot of people are thinking. Richard Petty Motorsports- which is now conglomeration of the old Petty Enterprises, Evernham Racing, and Yates Racing, is one big, stinking mess.
While the announcement was made of Mc Ardle’s move to become Director of Competition at Furniture Row Racing, he made a little dig at George Gillett, RPM’s majority owner. When commenting on FRR’s owner Barney Visser, Mc Ardle said that Visser was in racing for the “right reasons,” and that it’s good to work for someone he could “get behind.”
Mc Ardle got canned at Richmond in September shortly after a heated exchange with Gillett. He added that for him, things became “more and more difficult,” after the departure of Ray Evernham, in whose team Gillett bought interest.
It would be easy to chalk the comments up to sour grapes, but you know, I think Mc Ardle just said what a lot of fans are thinking. Ever since the day George Gillett entered into the ownership picture at Evernham, it’s been one perpetually stirred pot. There have been more people coming and going then a season on The Apprentice.
It would be easy to think that the constant state of flux at RPM is just another sign of the times. After all, we’ve seen plenty of moving and shaking involving DEI, Chip Ganassi, Yates Racing and Hall Of Fame Racing to name a few. The thing with Gillett is that it seems that bad news travels with him wherever he goes.
Gillett’s dealings with the Liverpool soccer team in the English Premiership has read a bit like an episode of Dallas- complete with angry fans who want Gillett to go away and a soured relationship with partners. You’ve got your best driver (Kasey Kahne) talking bailing, it’s just not a good situation.
The most telling statement is Mc Ardle saying that his new boss (Visser) is in racing for the “right reasons.” You see the inference? Gillett is not a racing man.
In my humble opinion, that’s the problem with 90% of the problems in NASCAR: non-racing people making racing decisions. I know this is all happening these days under the banner of Richard Petty’s name, but you know it’s not Petty holding the purse strings, or we’d still have Petty Enterprises.
It’s a shame. Maybe businessmen ought to stick to business. If they want a good racing team, fine. Then, hire good racing people and let THEM run it.
It looks like George Gillett is bucking to become the Dan Snyder (Washington Redskins owner) of NASCAR owners. That’s no compliment.
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Even Robby jumped that ship. Robby had a 5 year deal with GEM and it was time to get council involved and get the hell out of Dodge… Pun intended.
Robby is a smart guy and it took 6 months to see it wasn’t a racing deal.
Poor Mr Petty, he put his name down on the wrong paperwork.
I think John Menard is smart too and he knows it’s just a matter of time before he picks that whole team up for bargin basement prices. I’m sure Robby gave John the heads up too…
not a fan of people of gilletts ilk..they buy up stuff as a “rich boys hobby” and proceed to “expletive delete” it up
nascar is something you really gotta have a heart and love for..you dont go into nascar thinking your gonna get rich and make your money back tenfold..(unless your a lame pathetic start and parker..blah) if ya aint a nascar fan first and a billionaire second..stay the heck away from our pasttime gosh dangit all to heck!!!!
There are a TON of non-racing people making decisions in this sport. That is where a majority of the problems come from. Racers are forced to follow orders from people who aren’t racers in order to save their jobs.
Engineering, marketing, sales, sports management, and communication degrees run the entire sport. This is not a good thing.
It is a shame how the sport has evolved into this.
It’s the same way in ANY business. They hire, or someone with a ton of money buys in with NO experience and they ruin it for everyone invloved!!
I sincerely pray that “RP” doesn’t allow Gillett to pull him down with him. As much as I want to see “RP” at the track and somehow involved, I do not want his name dragged in the mud because of Gillett. Gillett needs Richard, Richard does not need Gillett!
As much as I agree that RPM seems to be an organization in the throes of merging and settling into a new organization (which is to be somewhat expected), I can’t agree that 90% of NASCAR’s problems stem from non-racing people making decisions.
I doubt we could genuinely suggest that NASCAR would have experienced the growth and incredible amount of money influx were it left up to “racing people.” And what are “racing people” anyway?
Gillett is a business man and is interested in turning a profit. Given the significant amount of sponsorship Kahne, Sadler and AJ (and now Menard) have been able to drum up, I’m guessing that he is turning a small profit in a really, really bad economic time. Further, he has the resources to run these teams.
Get used to it, owners like Mateschitz and Gillet are the future of NASCAR given the insane resources needed to keep teams operational….Hendrick, Childress and Penske are the last of a dying breed.
TM, you forgot Jack Roush. He still counts as an “Old School” owner. As a Ford fan I hope RPM gets the kinks worked out and can run a competitive team next year and in the future. As far as Robby Gordon goes, well that jump to Toyota made a winner out of him, oh wait no it didn’t. How many races is he running in 2010 maybe a handfull. People think John Menard wastes a lot of money on his son Paul, and that may be true, but as far as I am concerned any money spent on Robby Gordon is a waste.
To say that TM’s comments are wrong would be a substantial understatement.
I am more than willing to be wrong, but at least have the respectfulness to enlighten me.
i personally believe that the gilletts and petty are doing what they can to make the team better. hell with all the turmol they still had a top ten car and the 44 was making big strides. for is just what they need to contend with the hendrick cars. and by the way how may cars are really under the hendrick banner. the last thing we need is another hendrick satelite team. time will tell but i think rpm rocks in 10. and as for khane. if he doesn’t want to been with rpm. the good by and see you later.
@Joe W. It always makes me wonder if people who slam Robby Gordon really know the type of racer he is. In these times of crying about vanilla drivers, he is far from that. I suggest you check out the stats of what he’s done in anything from SCORE to CART to CUP. You might be surprised to find that there are other 7 time champions with 5 in a row. Just because he chooses to not put all his eggs into the NA$CAR suckhole doesn’t make him less than. He always has time for his fans and those who aren’t. I’m sure he’d discuss this with you but he’s a little busy right now. You see, he’s currently in Venezuela/Chili running the DAKAR. Hmm…wonder what JJ’s doing right now.
TM,
Sorry to have “disrespected” you. I will share my point of view, which may be enlightening. The dying breed group you mentioned in your post; Hendrick, Childress, Penske… these are what we call “racing people”. They were involved in racing before it was, as they say, cool. Certainly they were in it for the sport, not the marketing platform it has become. Business men are in it for the money. Some get into it for a profit, some get into it for a tax write off, some get into it because they want to hang around athletes and some just want to use it as a support for the lifestyle they have become accustomed to. All use other peoples money to operate. Some have a fortune on paper but would be hard pressed to cash a $10,000 check on their own. When other peoples money runs out, they move on to the next thing they can use other peoples money to achieve their goals. Time will tell where the Gillett family fits into the racing community. It should be noted that since they took control of Evernham Motorsports, almost all the “racing people” have left, with their best driver saying he was leaving at the end of his contract. My opinion is that if the Gillett family is the “future ” of this sport, then that light you see at the end of the tunnel is really a 100 car freight train headed your way.
Mike, thanks for making my point. Robbie is not commited to anything. He jumps from this to that. He changes manufactors in Nascar every year. And he seems to run worse with every change. As far as JJ goes, well I guess he is taking a much desevred vacation or is shooting a commercial somewhere. I don’t see Peyton Manning or Tom Brady playing in the CFL during the off season. Get my point? I know Robbie has been a winner in other forms or racing and I know he has won a few Cup races but look at his results the last few years. They continue to get worse. He is no longer even a threat on a road course, a place where he used to be a master.
jr, where did you see where kk said he was leaving. i have only seen that he was going to look around. let him go. plenty of top notch drivers would like to drive the #9 bud car.
Just saw where JJ’s wife is knocked up. Guess I now know what he’s been doing with his off time.
Nobody accuses Stewart of doing this and that when he’s off Sprint Car racing in Australia or wherever. Oh, that’s right, he’s got that Hendrick satellite thing going which gives him cred. What brand is he driving this year and what was he in prior to that? Oh, that’s right, that’s different because he is/was driving for a powerhouse team.
Bottom line is RGM is the dying breed. A team doing whatever it takes to race, not S&P. The type NA$CAR is working on weeding out in the name of the franchise. I wouldn’t care if he changed decals, I mean manufacturers, every week if that’s what it took to stay on the track and tell NA$CAR “screw you”. But bottom line is, in the face of the current NA$CAR, it’s only a matter of time before he and any other small team is driven out. I’m surprised he hasn’t “failed” a NA$CAR mandated drug test.
And BTW. Do you know what it takes to run a race like DAKAR? RGM sits fifth overall right now.
Mike, Tony Stewart is a Champion. He was a Champion in Indy Car as well. He is using his off season to race. That is his choice, just like it is for Robby Gordon. The difference is Robby does it during the Nascar season too. Maybe he needs the extra income, but he did once drive for RCR and he was no super sucess there either. Blame it on what you want, but he is not the driver Tony Stewart is and that is a fact. His “style” that you like has never meshed well with other team owners. You may want to say he is the last of a dying breed and maybe that is so, at least for the present, but he is not as good a driver as Allen Kulwicki was either. That is just the truth.