Despite The Effort, Numbers Didn’t Add Up For Red Bull

Photos

Despite The Effort, Numbers Didn’t Add Up For Red Bull

see larger image

uploaded by Motor Sports Unplugged

 When the Associated Press broke the news that Red Bull Racing will close its Sprint Cup operation at season’s end, it was sad news for those employed by the team and those they serve so well.

The decision made by organization brass to end its association with NASCAR states how important it is to have championships, wins and pole positions as a measure of success.

Millions of dollars have been spent to find that success and, for a variety of reasons, it just hasn’t happened. Current drivers Kasey Kahne and Brian Vickers each have five top-10 finishes and are 19th in and 24th in points, respectively. For what is considered a powerhouse organization, those numbers are not good enough.

Fortunately those who work for the organization will have jobs through the remainder of the season. After that, an influx of team personnel will be looking for positions in an already extremely competitive job market in the Sprint Cup garage area.

In 2007, Red Bull’s owner Dietrich Mateschitz elected to open the doors of his own organization and sponsor his teams rather than support an existing operation. Over the past five years, the money flowed like the Red Bull energy drink that founded the No. 82 (now No. 4) and No. 83 teams. A Who’s Who list of some of NASCAR’s noted drivers have been at the controls, such as Vickers, A.J. Allmendinger, Mike Skinner, Casey Mears, Scott Speed, Boris Said and Kahne, to name a few.

A look at the organization’s statistics paints a very clear but frustrating picture. In some 265 starts since 2007, Vickers has the lone victory to his credit, coming on Aug. 16, 2009 at Michigan Speedway. Vickers also secured a spot among the top 12 Chase drivers and finished his season in that 12th position.

Two years earlier, Vickers failed to qualify for 13 of 36 races. He finished 38th in the final Sprint Cup standings. Allmendinger missed 19 races that same year in the team’s second car and was 43rd in the final points.

Red Bull personnel as well as NASCAR officials learned of the impending closure this weekend as cars were being prepared to race at MIS. According to sources, a representative of the Austrian-based company attended Sunday’s race and quietly confirmed the company’s plans to cease its NASCAR involvement.

The immediate plan is for General Manager Jay Frye to begin to find investors to buy the two Toyota teams and keep the operation moving forward beyond 2011. In this economy, it could be a very tough sell.

A statement issued from the company reads, “Red Bull Racing Team is currently seeking outside investors as we evaluate the next steps in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. We are not at liberty to comment on details while negotiations are under way. Red Bull fully supports NASCAR for the remainder of the 2011 season as we fight for victories and a position in the 2011 Chase for the Sprint Cup.”

If or when such a scenario develops and new ownership emerges, the team would basically start from scratch, as Kahne and Vickers will be going elsewhere, as will Cole Whitt, the team’s development driver.

Vickers hinted at a change recently, saying he wasn’t completely sure what his future would hold. No one knew at the time there was a much deeper story developing behind the scenes. But to be fair to Vickers, he may not have known of any pending change when he made the statement. His contract with Red Bull runs out at the end of 2011.

It should be noted that past prominent teams have gone away, often leaving heavy debt and scandal somewhere in the storyline.

But in the case of Red Bull Racing, nothing could be further from the truth. Many facts remain to unfold but financial issues would be highly unlikely for the very solid corporate giant. It seems to be a bottom line business decision and nothing more.

While the NASCAR teams have struggled to put together winning seasons, Red Bull has enjoyed success in Formula One competition the past two seasons with a Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber. Vettel is the defending series champion and leads the points, having won five of seven races this year.

The toughest part of the Red Bull equation comes with its people, some of the finest professionals in all of motorsports. They’ve worked extremely hard over the past five seasons to build a winning organization but the lack of chemistry hasn’t made it happen.

One can’t blame lack of equipment, lack of knowledge or lack of talent. It’s everyone’s hope that new investors can buy the team and keep the operation intact. There are five months left in the season, plenty of time to put a deal together.

Seeing Red Bull pull away from NASCAR makes for a very sad story. But like so many businesses have had to do in this incredibly tough economy, it’s simply time to look at the bottom line to see if owning a Sprint Cup team continues to make sense.

In this case, Mateschitz and the decision makers around him feel its time to step away. 

http://motorsportsunplugged.com/?p=3768