20 million to win the double

[SUBARUTEAM]

that should get everyone's attention.

[call_me_andrew]

What are you talking about?

[Rollo]

Chelsea winning the League and the FA Cup?

[Chev_350]

What double?

[SUBARUTEAM]

http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/indycar-bernards-20m-gamble/

[garyshell]

Go figure, Bruton Smith can't keep his damn mouth shut. What a tool.

Gary

[Scotty G.]

Sounds great.

Will be nice to add some actual talent and known drivers to the Indy 500 again. The fields recently have been low on talent/experience and even lower on meter-moving names.

Working together with America's biggest racing organization makes a hell of a lot more sense then working against them. They actually have fans and sponsors. Something Randy needs to get in a hurry if this thing is going to be salvaged.

Good move by both parties.

[SUBARUTEAM]

there is plenty of talant in indycar (the top 2/3rds of the field)
but i agree, it makes a whole lot of sense.

Randy is just what this sport needs.

[slorydn1]

I'd be all over it...and just imagine the possibilities that could open up.

For $20 million, I believe that you would have more than just the usual suspects from Nascar trying it out (Robbie Gordon, John Andretti, Casey Mears) but I could for see the likes of Tony Stewart, or even a Ryan Newman or Jeff Gordon giving it a whirl. And how about the flip side of that, Ryan Briscoe or Helio Castroneves taking a shot at the 600 in a 4th Penske car....

The possibilties could be endless and could just bring some notoriety back to Indy Car. I can tell you we all watched with great interest several years back when Tstew was flying back and forth between the tracks, and ate up every moment of coverage that Robbie Gordon got, it was big for Nascar fans to see their guy in the "Big Race". Alot of of today's Nascar fans have zero idea what Indy Car is all about as they are new even to Nascar. I think the cross promotion could be a big deal for both sides, and could only help Indy Car, I really can't see any drawbacks to it.

[peasant]

I don't want to get my hopes up, but since randy has come in theres been a lot more 'just maybe' and not so much' can it get any worse '

[Mark in Oshawa]

Randy doesn't have the 20 million. This Bruton Smith throwing the IRL a bone....and the idea of turning the double has now more than just doing it in its favour, it has some real money ON the TABLE...

[SarahFan]

A couple of thoughts ...

Juan has got to atop the list of drivers that would/could actually win both... not just take a shot at it

although good for NASCAR and the 600 .... This is a much much better deal for indycar....

Just get it done Randy ....

[MDS]

Randy doesn't have the 20 million.

That's not how it works. For a promotion like this you don't have to have $20 million sitting a bank account in case someone wins.

I've been involved with similar deals on the marketing side and what you do is go to an underwriting firm like Lloyd's of London. A statistical analysis is done and then you pay for an insurance policy based on the risk involved. It works a little bit like a reverse sports book, the lower the odds, the more you pay for the policy.

What Bernard and the league would do is either take out a group policy for all of the drivers in the field, or do individual policies for each driver doing the double, which ever is cheaper. For instance the odds of John Andretti or Graham Rahal winning both races could be 1000 to 1 for example, Danica Patrick could be 50 to 1 where as a former Indy 500 winner and NASCAR winner Juan Pablo Montoya with a competitive ride in each race might be around 25 to 1. The odds of anyone doing it are hugely rare. Even Tony Stewart in his prime in a Ganassi G-Force in a weak Indy 500 field and a Joe Gibbs car in the 600 finished sixth in the 500 and third in the 600.

It's probably a win-win for the league and Lloyd's, Lloyd's gets to pocket some cash on a long odds scenario and the Indy and Charlotte, which would probably split the cost of the policies, could see a massive promotional opportunity.

[ShiftingGears]

Brilliant idea. Simple - effective.

[SarahFan]

That's not how it works. For a promotion like this you don't have to have $20 million sitting a bank account in case someone wins.

I've been involved with similar deals on the marketing side and what you do is go to an underwriting firm like Lloyd's of London. A statistical analysis is done and then you pay for an insurance policy based on the risk involved. It works a little bit like a reverse sports book, the lower the odds, the more you pay for the policy.

What Bernard and the league would do is either take out a group policy for all of the drivers in the field, or do individual policies for each driver doing the double, which ever is cheaper. For instance the odds of John Andretti or Graham Rahal winning both races could be 1000 to 1 for example, Danica Patrick could be 50 to 1 where as a former Indy 500 winner and NASCAR winner Juan Pablo Montoya with a competitive ride in each race might be around 25 to 1. The odds of anyone doing it are hugely rare. Even Tony Stewart in his prime in a Ganassi G-Force in a weak Indy 500 field and a Joe Gibbs car in the 600 finished sixth in the 500 and third in the 600.

It's probably a win-win for the league and Lloyd's, Lloyd's gets to pocket some cash on a long odds scenario and the Indy and Charlotte, which would probably split the cost of the policies, could see a massive promotional opportunity.


yep.... its like hitting a hole-in-one and winning a car at a charity golf event....

[MDS]

yep.... its like hitting a hole-in-one and winning a car at a charity golf event....

Or... in an ideal world you find a sponsor willing to cover some or of the costs as part of a larger marketing strategy, like the "Valvoline Memorial Day Double Challenge," or something like that. When that happens you cover some of the costs while promoting your event, and since NASCAR would be involved getting a major sponsor to sign on would be plausible.

[SarahFan]

Or... in an ideal world you find a sponsor willing to cover some or of the costs as part of a larger marketing strategy, like the "Valvoline Memorial Day Double Challenge," or something like that. When that happens you cover some of the costs while promoting your event, and since NASCAR would be involved getting a major sponsor to sign on would be plausible.

I'd think its a totally doable deal....

what are the realistic odds of someone winning both...

I'd say 100-1

so the insurance company says... hey we will cover the 20mil for 1 mil...

the you get XYZco. to be the sponsor at a cost of 1.5 mil..... and IMS/SMI make a cool 1/4 mil each...... not a bad deal for all involved....


I dont think thats totally out of the realm of possibility

[chuck34]

This sounds like a great idea to me. I'm sure it would bring a lot of attention to both events. And if I was a company out there with a couple mil just lying around, I'd ante up in a heartbeat.

[garyshell]

Randy doesn't have the 20 million. This Bruton Smith throwing the IRL a bone....and the idea of turning the double has now more than just doing it in its favour, it has some real money ON the TABLE...


Neither one of them has to have 20 million, they just need to have enough to buy the insurance policy.

Gary

[SarahFan]

anybody have any idea what the premium would be?


*i thru out a mil to cover the 20......I'm thinking that might be a little low

[SarahFan]

http://www.holeinoneinsurance.com/how-much-does-it-cost.html


* i know there are other factors.....but the numbers say with 72 golfers and a price of $60k cayenne the price is $867....... at $20mil that translates to a premium of $289k...

now i know that doesnt directly translate, but hmmmmmm

[ICWS]

I'd be all over it...and just imagine the possibilities that could open up.

For $20 million, I believe that you would have more than just the usual suspects from Nascar trying it out (Robbie Gordon, John Andretti, Casey Mears) but I could for see the likes of Tony Stewart, or even a Ryan Newman or Jeff Gordon giving it a whirl. And how about the flip side of that, Ryan Briscoe or Helio Castroneves taking a shot at the 600 in a 4th Penske car....

The possibilties could be endless and could just bring some notoriety back to Indy Car. I can tell you we all watched with great interest several years back when Tstew was flying back and forth between the tracks, and ate up every moment of coverage that Robbie Gordon got, it was big for Nascar fans to see their guy in the "Big Race". Alot of of today's Nascar fans have zero idea what Indy Car is all about as they are new even to Nascar. I think the cross promotion could be a big deal for both sides, and could only help Indy Car, I really can't see any drawbacks to it.

If IndyCar wanted to make this "double" scenario easier, they may consider running the Indy 500 on Monday (Memorial Day) at 1 pm or so. That would technically still put both races (Coke 600 and Indy 500) within a 24-hour time window, even though they would be on two different days. The Coca-Cola 600 could complete its race and allow those drivers to get a little rest before the Indy 500, instead of having to go straight from Indianapolis to Charlotte. The drivers would also be able to get to the drivers' meetings so they won't have to start the races in last place. That would allow the drivers who compete in both races to be in a competitive situation if they qualified well for both races.

From a marketing perspective, this scenario places the Indianapolis 500 as the 2nd race of the "double", thus making it the main event. Being on Monday, they would also avoid competiting with other U.S. sports (MLB and NBA playoffs in particular) that occur on the Sunday before Memorial Day.

[MDS]

anybody have any idea what the premium would be?


*i thru out a mil to cover the 20......I'm thinking that might be a little low

Actually I'm thinking the $1 million might be high. The odds of someone pulling it off are fairly remote, again look at Tony Stewart in 2001.

If Sam Hornish, Juan Pablo and Dario Franchitti all do the double with their respective teams the policy would be at the higher end. Beyond that it depends on who gets what ride.

Assume that Chip, Roger and Michael only field one more entry a piece for the 500 two of those three seats would be taken by Sam and JPM. So if Kyle Bush got a chance in AGR equipment I think he'd have a reasonable chance at winning both races, but after that I don't know. So I would think with three drivers with a reasonable chance of winning, it might be near $1 million, by from my experience the cost is typically less than a 20 to 1 ratio.

As far as the rest of the field Junior doesn't win a lot of NASCAR races these days, and I doubt he'd have much of a chance at a place like Panther or KVRT, and once you get past those two teams they'd basically be NASCAR drivers doing the double for the experience unless NHR is suddenly resurgent.

John Andretti, Robby Gordon, both have chances at the 500 but no chance at the 600. If Danica continues to split time between both she could win the 500, but I can't see her winning the 600 in first apperance.

Ideally Graham and Marco would both run the double, but both would be a dark horse for the 600 even if they got into strong cars, although Dario would be less of one in a DEI/Ganassi car.

What I think would be cool, if they had say eight guys, JPM, Dario, Graham, Rahal, Sam, Danica, Kyle Bush, and Junior is if they put the $20 million out there, but had some sort of prize fund for say the drivers with the top three drivers, then you would have a race within a race, and a reasonable shot at pulling down $50,000 or something for the guy with best average.

[garyshell]

If IndyCar wanted to make this "double" scenario easier, they may consider running the Indy 500 on Monday (Memorial Day) at 1 pm or so.

Not gonna happen. Too many folks need that Monday as a travel day.

Gary

[SUBARUTEAM]

imagine the noise the folks in charlotte would make when 15 helicoptors fly in from indy in formation. it would make great tv!!

good luck to randy - not sure he can get it done but good on 'em for trying.

[Marbles]

I'm liking this Randy Bernard. It's a great idea. If Bruton shootin' off his mouth didn't ruffle the feathers of any manufacturers\sponsors that had first needed to be sweet-talked than Bernard has got a deal he will surely benefit from. Not so for Bruton.

The Indy 500 race is a guaranteed draw for the sensation but if no one doing the double header wins than it's game over. I'm sure NASCAR will still get some more eyes but not as many. Maybe Bernard has to pony up more money.

Advantage goes to the NASCAR boys. There's a good chance they could get in a third or fourth car with a decent team but would an Indy driver have the same chances?

[SoCalPVguy]

cheesy publicity stunt with absolutely no chance of every having to pay off.

[Chamoo]

cheesy publicity stunt with absolutely no chance of every having to pay off.

Those are the best types of publicity stunts!

[call_me_andrew]

If IndyCar wanted to make this "double" scenario easier, they may consider running the Indy 500 on Monday (Memorial Day) at 1 pm or so. That would technically still put both races (Coke 600 and Indy 500) within a 24-hour time window, even though they would be on two different days. The Coca-Cola 600 could complete its race and allow those drivers to get a little rest before the Indy 500, instead of having to go straight from Indianapolis to Charlotte. The drivers would also be able to get to the drivers' meetings so they won't have to start the races in last place. That would allow the drivers who compete in both races to be in a competitive situation if they qualified well for both races.

From a marketing perspective, this scenario places the Indianapolis 500 as the 2nd race of the "double", thus making it the main event. Being on Monday, they would also avoid competiting with other U.S. sports (MLB and NBA playoffs in particular) that occur on the Sunday before Memorial Day.

Why would you want to make it easier? No one is supposed to win! $20 million is the carrot and time is the stick.

[ICWS]

Why would you want to make it easier? No one is supposed to win! $20 million is the carrot and time is the stick.

It would be easier in the sense that drivers racing for the "double" would not deal with missing the driver's meetings and forcing them to start in last place. If Tony Stewart, for example qualified 5th for the 600 and 8th for the 500, he should be able to start in those positions rather than starting 43rd or 33rd. It also allows Stewart to have the traditional trophy presentations and news conferences that would follow if he were to win these races instead of skipping them in order to head over to the other track in a hurried fashion.

[SarahFan]

bottom line is that its not supposed to be easy

[DBell]

This is a good idea, but it's hard to see this actually happening. Is Toyota and Chevy really going to let their drivers race Hondas at Indy? Along with other sponsor conflicts and Nascar teams just not wanting to take the chance of their drivers getting hurt, it makes me wonder if any of the big name Nascar drivers would be allowed to take part. I remember Jr. used to do some sportscar racing until he wrecked one on the warm up lap and it caught fire. I don't think he's raced anything but Nascar since. Like I said, I like the idea, but restrictions from contractual agreements seem to be a giant stumbling block. I also think only a Nascar driver would have a ghost of a chance of winning both since it's hard to see any Indycar guys getting a decent car at Charlotte.

[SarahFan]

This is a good idea, but it's hard to see this actually happening. Is Toyota and Chevy really going to let their drivers race Hondas at Indy? Along with other sponsor conflicts and Nascar teams just not wanting to take the chance of their drivers getting hurt, it makes me wonder if any of the big name Nascar drivers would be allowed to take part. I remember Jr. used to do some sportscar racing until he wrecked one on the warm up lap and it caught fire. I don't think he's raced anything but Nascar since. Like I said, I like the idea, but restrictions from contractual agreements seem to be a giant stumbling block. I also think only a Nascar driver would have a ghost of a chance of winning both since it's hard to see any Indycar guys getting a decent car at Charlotte.

in the immediate contracts will be an issue.....but as those contracts are re-negotiated if a racer DOES want to do the double they will address it and deal with it, inserting speciific language that will allow them to do so