What's more important, winning or loyalty?

buckaroo

buckaroo

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Another thread has talked about the differences in owner styles. This owner wants winners and that owner is only interested in souvineer sales and popular drivers. I think it has to be a little of both. Of course, the object of this game is to win so a proven winner is always a choice. However, now days, to be able to get and keep a high dollar sponsor, an owner also has to be able to find a driver who is as popular as he can be. Finding a driver who is both a winner and popular is the obvious goal. Since there are really few of them, where does the owner turn. Would he, if he could, choose a different driver for every race? I don't think he would, but sticking with a driver who seldom, if ever finishes in the top 10 has got to wear on him. The only possible advantage to doing that is in the final standings and the money that comes along with it. I don't know how much money is given to owner points, but we all know the difference in driver points winnings. If an owner changes drivers but once in a season, it really hurts in the driver standings. Therefore, I can see why an owner might wait untl well late in the season before he changes a driver, or at the very beginning as well.
 
I believe it is a combination of performance and loyalty.
AND Chemistry needs to be thrown into the mix as well.
 
Winning, of course.:) However, winning will only happen if the tools, manpower, dollars (sponsorship, plus "pooled" money if more than one team), support (moral and financial), resonable expectations and LOYALTY are there. Luck falls in the mix somewhere too.:) Most owners in NASCAR that have made their mark on the sport (i.e. won Championships) came in, got what they thought might be a promising driver (rookie, vet, whatever) and worked with that driver to get him/her the best team together in order to get that/those wins. Adjustments were made (driver, crew chief, engine, etc) until a combination worked......few (actually none that I remember) did it the first time out. A fair minded, tough, yet loyal owner will breed loyalty among his teams........which breeds performance. The name of the game is winning......but, winning at the expense of loyalty is not the way continue winning. It's a tough balance......but one that has to be attained in order to become a Champion. I agree that a driver, crew chief or any other component of a team must perform....non performance should be reason for a change. However, is it reasonable to demand top performance without setting up the conditions to achieve that level of performance?

Guess I'm alone in this accessment, but heck I'm used to it.:D
 
In the old days when a hand shake was gold, loyalty, Today, winning being the two choices given.
 
I think skill is prety high on the list, once you put all the key players together: driver, crew chief, crew, sponsor,and euipment....the level at which this all comes together is key. If you do not have some one orchestrating the show behind the scenes to achieve this a team will never reach the high echelons of their chosen division. Whether that might be, at the local level, tour level, or WC level, once you get all the key ingredients there and mix them together then success will follow. It is a mix that few teams ever accomplish. I think once that is established loyalty follows.
 
You are all missing my point in this thread. I'm not talking about hiring, but rather when you as an owner already have a driver, winning or loyalty, when it comes to keeping him or firing him. Yes, it's very important to have a winner, but with only 36 races a year and there is always 43 cars lined up to race, there will be non-winners. I think you have to decide early if you are going to fire a driver, otherwise, it would be wise to fire him late in the season. Point money being the reason.
 
Business rules in this case... not performing=getting the walking papers. Crew Chief or driver
 
Now that you have clarified your question, may I say Racing is just that, the BUSINESS of racing.

If one is not pulling their own weight, time to move'm out.

On the other hand, if an owner is not supporting his own business either thru less than proper attention to the team or a personality conflict, that opens a whole new can of worms.
 
With your clarification I guess my orginal post still stands.......with a little modification. Each person on any team comes with a history. That person could be a "winner" with no loyalty to others on the team........would you want such a person? That person could be the most loyal person in the world to his team but isn't talented one bit......would you want that person? Those are two extremes and neither would be winners in this sport. So I say again.......it's a balance between the two. But if the balance can't be perfectly attained, then loyalty would be side I would rather have on the heavy side. Talent can be taught........loyalty comes from within.
 
Cha ching DEW. I think that is why it takes owners so long to fire a guy who hasn't performed. Most of the owners know how to recognize talent. The world is full of good drivers. Some have more talent than others, but you can make a good driver better if all the pieces of the puzzle (team) are perfect. An owner would hate to fire a young driver, only to find out later that the problem he had was in the makeup of the team. That's probably why so many of the owners try to mix up the crew many times before they find another driver. Which brings up another question? What would you do if you had the best crew chief and driver, but they couldn't work together? If you are in this situation, you more than likely will have more than one team and you can switch the two guys around. How many times have we seen this happen? It's when they have to fire one of them that has to be hard. I am sure Jack Roush hated to let Frankie Stodard go, but what else could he do?
 
He should have let Jeff Burton go too.They both were not pulling the same karma that they had before.To bad Frankie didn't have Citgo written on his contract.;)
 
Frankie is a cool Dude,and from the North east so i can't help but like him. I think Burton had a lot to do with the whole thing too, sometimes the chemistry just falls apart, Frankie will do fine wherever he goes.
 
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