Drivers' slice of pie too small

[majestyx]

Earnhardt Jr. tells reporters
By DAVID POOLE
The Charlotte Observer

BROOKLYN, Mich. Make no mistake, Dale Earnhardt Jr. knew what he was doing last week when he mentioned that he hadn't signed a contract that would secure his place as driver of the No. 8 Chevrolets.
"Every once in a while," he said to reporters Saturday at Michigan International Speedway, "you guys come in handy."

Earnhardt Jr. reiterated that he has no plans of leaving his ride with Dale Earnhardt Inc., but also made it clear he's going to his rampant popularity to work out the final points of his contract.

"I am definitely out to get what I feel like I deserve," Earnhardt Jr. said. "As sure as anybody can be about me driving the No. 8 car for as long as I drive, I am not going to do it for free. And I expect to be compensated as I would anywhere else in this business."



Complete articleHere.

 

[97forever]

Give Jr.credit for one thing:

He will bring up the big issues almost nobody else will.

Not convinced I really agree with him on this.True,the drivers are underpaid by the standards of other pro sports but what Jr. fails to take into account is that ALL pro athletes are ridiculously OVERPAID already!On the other hand though,the drivers certainly take the bulk of the risk and should be making the largest part of the money in question---whether over-inflated or not.

But the real issue,for me at least,seems to be the folks that Jr.is leaving out of the equation:namely the fans.Ultimately,the fans are going to have to shoulder the load.That is without question.Earnhardt seems to be simply taking his fame---made possible by those same fans---and using it to barter for more money....something about that bothers me.

In the end this is just a double edged sword for me.Both arguments have pro and con points.....

Where's Whizzer when you need him?

 

[HardScrabble]

The article makes Jr come across a tad different from the actual press conference. At least to me.

The full quote about the money drivers make and the question present a bit different light. The question is leading Jr to a large degree and his answer is a bit longer than the article quotes.

YOU AND TONY STEWART ARE GOING THROUGH THE SAME THING RIGHT NOW. IS PART OF YOUR GOAL TO MAKE SURE THE TOP DRIVERS IN THIS SPORT ARE PAID BETTER - LIKE OTHER ATHLETES?

"We make good money. We make plenty to live the lifestyle we want to live. There is a lot of money in this sport and much of it doesn't go to the drivers and they put on the show. So that can get frustrating sometimes. But again, you've got to look back at who you are, where you came from, who you want to be, and how you want to live."

"I've got plenty of money to do what I want to do and to live like I want to live. I'm really not out there buying yachts and airplanes, so I don't need to worry about those types of things. But as sponsor money increases, I'm sure the driver's salary and crew members and crew chiefs salaries always will increase as well. I drove that Busch Series car in 1998 for $350 week. So I've always been underpaid - I don't know what it is (laughs)."

Besides which seems to me the drivers are pretty well paid in relation to other sports anyway. You will rarely,if ever, be told what any drivers total income from racing is for any given season. We did hear that Jeff made around 25 mil a couple of years ago. I do notice that Jr has not in any public way ever even hinted at much his yearly income currently runs. I don't need to know, but if yer gonna bitch about it, give me the numbers.

Read the whole conference here:

Press Conference Link

 

[Gollum]

I feel like Drivers are making good money comparable to other sports. But It is a fact of life. Nobody ever feels like they make enought. Just ask Bill Gates.Yes the fans like us will pay the price. But that's the way it always been. We ( the fans ) are in a no win situation

 

[Whizzer]

Take nothing away from Junior. He is a quick study. He will be paid whatever he is worth to the people who want him as thier representative.
If it is too much, the fans have the option of losing interest in him.

Most fans don't remember, but the really BIG bucks started because the fans cried thier favorite drivers should get more money. This was about the mid-nineteen-eighties.
Shortly thereafter, the purses began to escalate, driver salaries were greater, ticket prices went higher and tracks did make improvements.
Things such as parking that used to be free or minimal priced were elevated at two to three times the previous rate, and the fans bitched at the rising prices, threw hissy fits and blamed who ??? You guessed it, good ole NA$CAR, those greedy sons a birch trees !!!!

Big money sucks the "fun" and life out of any sport. And the fault of this is not solely the fault of NASCAR. It is just easier to blame them since they are in charge.

If Junior can command a bigger paycheck, why not. It annoys me, but for different reasons.

97Forever, remember when you said, "a driver's worth is like the old Falcon in my backyard. It is worth as much as someone will pay for it"(sic).

What is Junior worth ?? I guess it all boils down to the question of, how much does Junior think his "Falcon" is worth??
And if he feels his "Falcon" is valuable to the point of what might be construed as greed or too much by others, it will come out. Sometimes greed can bite you in the butt, right where many men carry thier wallet. That could hurt. Not only Junior, but the sport as an entity. But for the sport, it already has.

 

[97forever]

Very well put Whiz.Of course it is all subjective as you pointed out...My 'Kurt Busch model' falcon is much more valuable to ME than is my 'Jr.' edition is.....lets just cross our fingers this doesnt affect our favorite sport any more negatively than it has too.

 

[Whizzer]

Originally posted by 97forever@Aug 17 2003, 02:53 PM
Very well put Whiz.Of course it is all subjective as you pointed out...My 'Kurt Busch model' falcon is much more valuable to ME than is my 'Jr.' edition is.....lets just cross our fingers this doesnt affect our favorite sport any more negatively than it has too.

Wishful thinking on your part 97Forever. The sport is tainted from the money and it can only get worse.

Think sandlot baseball games and one-fifth mile dirt track mud and bull rings where strictly stock cars and engines race. The feature winner might be paid one hundred dollars. The race was "fun", just as NASCAR WCS used to be "fun". Darrell Waltrip mentioned he enjoyed the Craftsman Truck Series becaue there is no pressure associated with this series. Darrell said, it is "fun".

The difference is the T-ball baseball leagues, organized and supervised by parents, who by getting involved, do not let the kids have "fun" in the sport these days. Left to thier own devices, kids, and adults, could still have "fun" if they did not try to grow, but remained local and kept the "fun" part.

In an association many years ago, a Winston Cup team transport driver told me he was disappointed as the sport was too dollar oriented. His exact words were, "the fun has gone out of it". This was about the time qualifying was narrowed from one-tenth to one-one-hundredth of a second. I could see the sadness in his eyes and I am sure, he saw in the future, a race team going out of business.