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IndyCar
MILLER: A Ray Of Hope
Between billboards, TV commercials, print ads and special promotions, IZOD has fallen for Indy cars like nobody thought possible in this economy.
The IndyCar Series has something of substance to promote in the national media after signing a real sponsor with a real interest in the future and growth of the sport. (IMS)
To be kind, the Indy Racing League’s history with title sponsors has been unfortunate. To be honest, it’s been a joke. First, there was Pep Boys or, as it turned out, Manny, Moe and No Jack. That was followed by Northern Light, a search engine that just couldn’t find the money it promised.
Both of those situations ended prematurely and in litigation as the IRL got burned by some slick talkers. The Northern Light’ mouthpiece boasted he would invest $50 million into Indy car racing which was interesting to some of us since the company’s net worth was south of $60 million.
IndyCar hasn’t had a title sponsor since 2001 because, frankly, it was looking for more money than it was worth while it fought with CART/Champ Car for an audience. And nobody was buying the fragmented remains of open wheel racing.
For the past few years Terry Angstadt, president of IndyCar’s commercial division, claimed to be close to securing a title sponsor, yet it never materialized. Keep in mind that Angstadt has the toughest job in motorsports – trying to sell a series that has fallen off the media map in this country.
When John Menard told me he’d offered the IRL $2 million a year to be the sponsor and it had declined, it sounded like more bad business on West 16th Street. Angstadt was either a Bob Reif School of Economics graduate or just totally unrealistic.
Turns out he was neither. After striking a clothing line deal in 2008, Angstadt kept pursuing IZOD for bigger and better things. This season, IZOD spent a reported $6 million on marketing and promotions, in addition to helping Ryan Hunter-Reay stay on track.
And now Angstadt has signed the clothing line owned by Phillips-Van Heusen to a multi-year, multi-million dollar commitment. Unlike Pep Boys and Northern Light, this isn’t a shotgun wedding, it’s a long courtship.
Between billboards, TV commercials, magazine and newspaper ads and special IndyCar clothes and promotions at Macy’s all over the country this past season, IZOD has fallen for Indy cars like nobody thought possible in this economy.
“To secure a title with the quality of an entity like Phillips-Van Heusen and the IZOD brand is beyond perfect,” said Angstadt, who was in New York City with the PVH executives for the announcement. “It’s a young-focused, sports-inspired brand with the ability to go outside motorsports and attract new fans.
“Their strong marketing skills, national retail partnerships and ability to bring fresh eyes to our sport have already proven powerful in our short time together. This is a great day for IndyCar racing.”
Angstadt is prone to exaggerate how good things are but this truly is an unexpected shot of credibility for a series that desperately needs it. And IndyCar couldn’t have a better point man than Mike Kelly, the executive vice president of marketing and creative for Phillips-Van Heusen.
He sold IndyCar to his boss, PVH president & CEO Allen Sirkin.
“It was an easy sell,” declared Kelly, who first signed Hunter-Reay to a personal services deal for IZOD. “Why was IndyCar a good fit for IZOD? I say, have you ever been to a race? It’s an amazing sport with so many different stories and we see it as an under-developed asset and brand.
“What these drivers do is amazing and, as a marketer, this is a unique opportunity. I had my people keep looking for things that were unappealing about this deal and it just kept getting better and better.”
No official numbers were disclosed but it’s believed the six-year deal is for $10 million annually – with $5M going directly to promotions and marketing, $100,000 per car as part of the TEAM program and hopefully a couple million for Hunter-Reay’s ride (which will be at Michael Andretti’s team in 2010).
For a group that’s stuck with terrible TV ratings on VERSUS and has very little in the way of major sponsorships, this is the first thing IndyCar could collectively smile about.
“The timing couldn’t be better because it brings some stability,” said Jeff Belskus, president and CEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, who also handles the finances for IndyCar. “This won’t make or break the series, we’ve still got many challenges and we need more partners like IZOD and PVH.
“But this is a huge first step.”
As already mentioned, racing officials tend to lose sight of reality at these back-slapping press conferences. They usually make like it’s a much bigger deal than it really is so sometimes a really significant moment gets lost in the b.s. But, make no mistake: this was a ringing endorsement from a major player.
I don’t often agree with anything Brian Barnhart says but the IndyCar president of competition may have never uttered truer words when he said: “This is the first legitimate title sponsor we’ve ever had.”
The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEEDtv.com, SPEED, FOX, or NewsCorp.
Robin Miller became an Indy-car junkie in late 1950s and stooged for his hero, Jim Hurtubise, at the 1968 Indy 500. He went on to work as a vent man and board man on Indy pit crews from 1971-77. Miller bought a Formula Ford from Andy Granatelli in 1972 and raced it in SCCA until 1974 when he purchased a midget from Gary Bettenhausen, competing in the USAC midget series from 1975-82.
Robin flunked out of Ball State College in 1968 and began working at The Indianapolis Star sports department in 1969, covered motorsports there from 1969-2000.
In addition to his broadcast work. Miller's also covered IndyCar racing for Autoweek, Autosport, Car & Driver and On Track magazines over the past 35 years.
The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEED.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or SPEED
Both of those situations ended prematurely and in litigation as the IRL got burned by some slick talkers. The Northern Light’ mouthpiece boasted he would invest $50 million into Indy car racing which was interesting to some of us since the company’s net worth was south of $60 million.
IndyCar hasn’t had a title sponsor since 2001 because, frankly, it was looking for more money than it was worth while it fought with CART/Champ Car for an audience. And nobody was buying the fragmented remains of open wheel racing.
For the past few years Terry Angstadt, president of IndyCar’s commercial division, claimed to be close to securing a title sponsor, yet it never materialized. Keep in mind that Angstadt has the toughest job in motorsports – trying to sell a series that has fallen off the media map in this country.
When John Menard told me he’d offered the IRL $2 million a year to be the sponsor and it had declined, it sounded like more bad business on West 16th Street. Angstadt was either a Bob Reif School of Economics graduate or just totally unrealistic.
Turns out he was neither. After striking a clothing line deal in 2008, Angstadt kept pursuing IZOD for bigger and better things. This season, IZOD spent a reported $6 million on marketing and promotions, in addition to helping Ryan Hunter-Reay stay on track.
And now Angstadt has signed the clothing line owned by Phillips-Van Heusen to a multi-year, multi-million dollar commitment. Unlike Pep Boys and Northern Light, this isn’t a shotgun wedding, it’s a long courtship.
Between billboards, TV commercials, magazine and newspaper ads and special IndyCar clothes and promotions at Macy’s all over the country this past season, IZOD has fallen for Indy cars like nobody thought possible in this economy.
“To secure a title with the quality of an entity like Phillips-Van Heusen and the IZOD brand is beyond perfect,” said Angstadt, who was in New York City with the PVH executives for the announcement. “It’s a young-focused, sports-inspired brand with the ability to go outside motorsports and attract new fans.
“Their strong marketing skills, national retail partnerships and ability to bring fresh eyes to our sport have already proven powerful in our short time together. This is a great day for IndyCar racing.”
Angstadt is prone to exaggerate how good things are but this truly is an unexpected shot of credibility for a series that desperately needs it. And IndyCar couldn’t have a better point man than Mike Kelly, the executive vice president of marketing and creative for Phillips-Van Heusen.
He sold IndyCar to his boss, PVH president & CEO Allen Sirkin.
“It was an easy sell,” declared Kelly, who first signed Hunter-Reay to a personal services deal for IZOD. “Why was IndyCar a good fit for IZOD? I say, have you ever been to a race? It’s an amazing sport with so many different stories and we see it as an under-developed asset and brand.
“What these drivers do is amazing and, as a marketer, this is a unique opportunity. I had my people keep looking for things that were unappealing about this deal and it just kept getting better and better.”
No official numbers were disclosed but it’s believed the six-year deal is for $10 million annually – with $5M going directly to promotions and marketing, $100,000 per car as part of the TEAM program and hopefully a couple million for Hunter-Reay’s ride (which will be at Michael Andretti’s team in 2010).
For a group that’s stuck with terrible TV ratings on VERSUS and has very little in the way of major sponsorships, this is the first thing IndyCar could collectively smile about.
“The timing couldn’t be better because it brings some stability,” said Jeff Belskus, president and CEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, who also handles the finances for IndyCar. “This won’t make or break the series, we’ve still got many challenges and we need more partners like IZOD and PVH.
“But this is a huge first step.”
As already mentioned, racing officials tend to lose sight of reality at these back-slapping press conferences. They usually make like it’s a much bigger deal than it really is so sometimes a really significant moment gets lost in the b.s. But, make no mistake: this was a ringing endorsement from a major player.
I don’t often agree with anything Brian Barnhart says but the IndyCar president of competition may have never uttered truer words when he said: “This is the first legitimate title sponsor we’ve ever had.”
The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEEDtv.com, SPEED, FOX, or NewsCorp.
Robin Miller became an Indy-car junkie in late 1950s and stooged for his hero, Jim Hurtubise, at the 1968 Indy 500. He went on to work as a vent man and board man on Indy pit crews from 1971-77. Miller bought a Formula Ford from Andy Granatelli in 1972 and raced it in SCCA until 1974 when he purchased a midget from Gary Bettenhausen, competing in the USAC midget series from 1975-82.
Robin flunked out of Ball State College in 1968 and began working at The Indianapolis Star sports department in 1969, covered motorsports there from 1969-2000.
In addition to his broadcast work. Miller's also covered IndyCar racing for Autoweek, Autosport, Car & Driver and On Track magazines over the past 35 years.
The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEED.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or SPEED
2013 INDY 500 Practice
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