Toyota sets sights, and money, on Gibbs partnership
Posted: Friday June 1, 2007 12:28PM; Updated: Friday June 1, 2007 6:00PM
Late in 1999, rumors circulated in CART's Champ Car Series that Chip Ganassi Racing was going to switch from using Honda engines to using Toyota. At the time, the reports seemed pure fantasy. Ganassi was on the way to winning his fourth straight championship; Toyota was winless in the same four years.
Toyota, though, was convinced that its primary obstacle to victory lane was based on the quality of its teams rather than the quality of its engines. Toyota offered Ganassi a package of $10 million in cash and free engines -- worth $5 million -- per season to supply his two entries.
Ganassi stunned everyone in CART by accepting the offer. His team, with Juan Pablo Montoya, delivered the first victory for Toyota in their sixth race together. For Toyota, it became money well spent.
Now Toyota is following the game plan in the Nextel Cup, as it plans to follow-up its rookie season by making a plan to join forces with Joe Gibbs Racing.
With no top teams available for 2007, Toyota entered Cup competition by making deals with NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series partner Bill Davis Racing and helping Michael Waltrip Racing go from a team that run 18 Cup races in five seasons to three full-time operations. Toyota also supplies Red Bull Racing, a start-up team.
Not surprisingly, Toyota has struggled. Brian Vickers' fifth-place run at Lowe's last week was an amazing accomplishment considering he did it for a team less than a year old and a new manufacturer. Toss in the fact that all the Toyota teams are in the go-or-go-home group in qualifying each race and had to develop both the standard and the Car of Tomorrow at the same time, and those meager, infrequent feel-good results look slightly better.
Toyota, of course, believes it should be doing better, and with a top team, it would be. Several sources tell SI.com that Toyota is going hard after Joe Gibbs Racing and that Gibbs is very interested.
Officially, the Gibbs team denies any contact with Toyota: "It's news to us," team spokesman Mike Arning said. Toyota, as a matter of policy, does not comment on contract negotiations.
The potential deal is a delicate subject for Gibbs and Toyota. Gibbs' contract with Chevrolet, which runs out at the end of the year, stipulates this is a non-negotiating period with other manufacturers. Is contact to determine interest negotiating? You'd have to read the fine print and then get a clarification from an arbitrator to determine that. But sources say there definitely has been communication between Toyota and Gibbs.
While Toyota's interest is obvious why would Gibbs be interested in Toyota?
For one, Toyota would likely offer $25 million per year to Gibbs to run a four-car team, just more than $6 million per car. It also would provide the seed money for Gibbs' fourth car and fortify the budget on the No. 18 of J.J.Yeley, which is underfunded. How many new $25 million dollar sponsors are out there?
Even with the outlay of cash, Toyota would come out ahead on the deal. The obvious assets are Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin, championship-quality drivers. The hidden asset is Gibbs' outstanding engine department, headed by Mark Cronquist. The Toyota engine has competitive top-end power, but its middle-range drivability is suspect. It's said to be 40 horsepower down at certain places in the power band. Cronquist and his group have the skill to fix that problem relatively quickly.
Gibbs also will start next season with three drivers in the top 35 in the points, guaranteeing Toyota positions in the field each week. Stewart, Hamlin and Yeley have the talent to get into races on their own, but for Toyota, it would be a nice fail-safe position.
Breaking free of Chevy won't be easy for Gibbs. Chevrolet has tightly and well-written contracts, a legacy of former racing head Herb Fishel, and that would be a drawback for Gibbs should it decide to switch to Toyota. Unless Chevrolet released Gibbs, the team wouldn't be able to start testing until after Jan. 1. It's a deterrent to leaving, but the deep Gibbs' team, with 21 engineers and that engine shop, would be confident of overcoming a slightly late start.
The unknown factor for Toyota is Dale Earnhardt Jr. If Earnhardt decides to sign with Gibbs -- which would entail leaving Budweiser behind and aligning with a new sponsor -- before the non-negotiating period is over, Toyota would be frozen out. Earnhardt has said he'll only drive for Chevrolet. Earnhardt's marketability is awesome and he'd become the fourth driver at Gibbs and bring a financial package worth at least what Toyota is expected to offer.
But what happens if Earnhardt hasn't decided and Toyota walks in with that big checkbook and sets a deadline? Does Gibbs take a chance on waiting for Earnhardt and lose Toyota and perhaps end up with neither?
Toyota might also be willing to wait. It isn't interested in signing just any team. Toyota has those already. It needs teams that can win races immediately, and who else but Gibbs fits that description and is available? Ginn, maybe, depending upon who its drivers are next season.
Gibbs with Toyota next season? It sounds crazy. But history has a habit of repeating itself and Toyota has shown it can be awfully convincing. It's not afraid to raise the stakes.
Evernham moves toward deal with Gillette
Ray Evernham has signed a letter of intent to sell Evernham Motorsports to George Gillette, sources say. Gillette is going through the due diligence process, which should take 60 to 90 days.
Gillette, who also owns the NHL's Montreal Canadiens and Liverpool of the English Premier Soccer League, would become majority owner if the agreement is finalized. Evernham would remain to run the team under a management contract.
Posted: Friday June 1, 2007 12:28PM; Updated: Friday June 1, 2007 6:00PM
Late in 1999, rumors circulated in CART's Champ Car Series that Chip Ganassi Racing was going to switch from using Honda engines to using Toyota. At the time, the reports seemed pure fantasy. Ganassi was on the way to winning his fourth straight championship; Toyota was winless in the same four years.
Toyota, though, was convinced that its primary obstacle to victory lane was based on the quality of its teams rather than the quality of its engines. Toyota offered Ganassi a package of $10 million in cash and free engines -- worth $5 million -- per season to supply his two entries.
Ganassi stunned everyone in CART by accepting the offer. His team, with Juan Pablo Montoya, delivered the first victory for Toyota in their sixth race together. For Toyota, it became money well spent.
Now Toyota is following the game plan in the Nextel Cup, as it plans to follow-up its rookie season by making a plan to join forces with Joe Gibbs Racing.
With no top teams available for 2007, Toyota entered Cup competition by making deals with NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series partner Bill Davis Racing and helping Michael Waltrip Racing go from a team that run 18 Cup races in five seasons to three full-time operations. Toyota also supplies Red Bull Racing, a start-up team.
Not surprisingly, Toyota has struggled. Brian Vickers' fifth-place run at Lowe's last week was an amazing accomplishment considering he did it for a team less than a year old and a new manufacturer. Toss in the fact that all the Toyota teams are in the go-or-go-home group in qualifying each race and had to develop both the standard and the Car of Tomorrow at the same time, and those meager, infrequent feel-good results look slightly better.
Toyota, of course, believes it should be doing better, and with a top team, it would be. Several sources tell SI.com that Toyota is going hard after Joe Gibbs Racing and that Gibbs is very interested.
Officially, the Gibbs team denies any contact with Toyota: "It's news to us," team spokesman Mike Arning said. Toyota, as a matter of policy, does not comment on contract negotiations.
The potential deal is a delicate subject for Gibbs and Toyota. Gibbs' contract with Chevrolet, which runs out at the end of the year, stipulates this is a non-negotiating period with other manufacturers. Is contact to determine interest negotiating? You'd have to read the fine print and then get a clarification from an arbitrator to determine that. But sources say there definitely has been communication between Toyota and Gibbs.
While Toyota's interest is obvious why would Gibbs be interested in Toyota?
For one, Toyota would likely offer $25 million per year to Gibbs to run a four-car team, just more than $6 million per car. It also would provide the seed money for Gibbs' fourth car and fortify the budget on the No. 18 of J.J.Yeley, which is underfunded. How many new $25 million dollar sponsors are out there?
Even with the outlay of cash, Toyota would come out ahead on the deal. The obvious assets are Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin, championship-quality drivers. The hidden asset is Gibbs' outstanding engine department, headed by Mark Cronquist. The Toyota engine has competitive top-end power, but its middle-range drivability is suspect. It's said to be 40 horsepower down at certain places in the power band. Cronquist and his group have the skill to fix that problem relatively quickly.
Gibbs also will start next season with three drivers in the top 35 in the points, guaranteeing Toyota positions in the field each week. Stewart, Hamlin and Yeley have the talent to get into races on their own, but for Toyota, it would be a nice fail-safe position.
Breaking free of Chevy won't be easy for Gibbs. Chevrolet has tightly and well-written contracts, a legacy of former racing head Herb Fishel, and that would be a drawback for Gibbs should it decide to switch to Toyota. Unless Chevrolet released Gibbs, the team wouldn't be able to start testing until after Jan. 1. It's a deterrent to leaving, but the deep Gibbs' team, with 21 engineers and that engine shop, would be confident of overcoming a slightly late start.
The unknown factor for Toyota is Dale Earnhardt Jr. If Earnhardt decides to sign with Gibbs -- which would entail leaving Budweiser behind and aligning with a new sponsor -- before the non-negotiating period is over, Toyota would be frozen out. Earnhardt has said he'll only drive for Chevrolet. Earnhardt's marketability is awesome and he'd become the fourth driver at Gibbs and bring a financial package worth at least what Toyota is expected to offer.
But what happens if Earnhardt hasn't decided and Toyota walks in with that big checkbook and sets a deadline? Does Gibbs take a chance on waiting for Earnhardt and lose Toyota and perhaps end up with neither?
Toyota might also be willing to wait. It isn't interested in signing just any team. Toyota has those already. It needs teams that can win races immediately, and who else but Gibbs fits that description and is available? Ginn, maybe, depending upon who its drivers are next season.
Gibbs with Toyota next season? It sounds crazy. But history has a habit of repeating itself and Toyota has shown it can be awfully convincing. It's not afraid to raise the stakes.
Evernham moves toward deal with Gillette
Ray Evernham has signed a letter of intent to sell Evernham Motorsports to George Gillette, sources say. Gillette is going through the due diligence process, which should take 60 to 90 days.
Gillette, who also owns the NHL's Montreal Canadiens and Liverpool of the English Premier Soccer League, would become majority owner if the agreement is finalized. Evernham would remain to run the team under a management contract.
