IndyCar: Versus and National Identity

Those who have read this blog in the past know that I have no tolerance for those who blame Versus for IndyCar's cable television ratings woes.

The argument is simple. If you have a product that people want to see, then viewers will find you. Recall that it was not that long ago that a large portion of the NASCAR Cup schedule aired on The Nashville Network. The success that NASCAR enjoyed on second-tier cable demonstrated to national broadcast networks that Cup was a national sports entertainment product that was worth pursuing.

Conversely, IndyCar's poor ratings on Versus are well documented. Apologists have done what they have always done - blamed the telecaster.

A Product in Demand

Well, it seems that people indeed can find Versus if the product is something that they want to watch. I thank frequent commenter Andy Bernstein for bringing this article at Sports Media Watch to my attention.

Wednesday's Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals drew a 2.0 rating and 3.6 million viewers on Versus. The game between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Philadelphia Flyers was the highest rated Stanley Cup game on cable since 2002.

Some might argue that the ratings increase is due to the fact that two very popular teams happen to be playing in the Stanley Cup Finals. In my view, that argument is correct. It also supports my point concerning American drivers.

Versus is available only in the United States. Therefore, it benefits from having two popular American hockey teams playing on the sport's grandest stage. What do you think the Versus rating might have been if the Finals had included, say, the Montreal Canadiens and the Edmonton Oilers?

Facts are not always Fair

The market is telling IndyCar that the nationality of the participants matters. It provided a strong suggestion to that end in 2009, when the Indianapolis 500 had a record low eleven Americans in the field and earned its lowest rating in history on ABC. The market spoke very clearly again in 2010, when the Indianapolis 500 had nine Americans in the field, another new record low, and garnered its lowest rating in history for the second consecutive year.

The local market in Indianapolis spoke clearly on Memorial Day, when the rating for the 500 Victory Celebration dropped approximately 33% year over year. There is only one reason to watch the Victory Celebration - to listen to the drivers talk. One-third of the 2009 Victory Celebration audience determined that it was no longer interested in hearing IndyCar drivers talk.

Incidentally, a street spectacle in Baltimore will not solve this problem. In my view, each event that attracts international road racers only compounds the problem.

Argue with my opinions all you like; I welcome differing points of view. However, I do ask that you offer facts that support your conclusions.

In my view, the facts all tend to make the same statement - clearly, concisely, and loudly.

Roggespierre

IndyCar: A Tale of Two Cities

Now we know why the IndyCar Series will not race at the Milwaukee Mile in 2010. Frankly, it should not be a surprise to anyone who has been paying attention.


Dave Kallman of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel confirms the worst.

"...as much as the fans of the IRL race are devout, there aren't enough of them willing to buy tickets, and the event does not make money for the track."

If the Mile makes it to next season, then it will have NASCAR's Triple-A feeder series to thank. The IRL has failed in Milwaukee.


Milwaukee to Baltimore: the New Math

Meanwhile, attendance figures for the proposed Baltimore Grand Prix just keep getting better. Is it not amazing that the same series that couldn't draw in Milwaukee is going to be the most popular thing to hit the streets of Charm City since John Unitas?



Let's see. IndyCar attracted approximately 28,000 spectators at Milwaukee this year.

28,000 * 4 days = 112,000 fans for the Baltimore Grand Prix

2,000 crew, officials, vendors, volunteers, etc. * 4 days = 8,000 more in attendance


Total Baltimore Grand Prix Attendance = 120,000

Awesome!

Incidentally, the crowd at this year's Honda Indy Toronto was estimated at between 30,000 and 40,000 spectators. I can't find any records of public subsidies for that one. But we do know that the IndyCar teams incur the Toronto Tax as part of their engine lease payments to Honda.

Just think of the exposure. How else might Baltimore be seen on television by an audience like this?


Warning to the People of Baltimore

This race is a boondoggle. Most of the money that might be spent at the Baltimore Grand Prix would likely be spent in Baltimore anyway. This thing will generate less economic output than an Orioles' weekend series with the Red Sox.

Don't take my word for it. Ask the good people of San Jose. Check with the folks in Edmonton. Consult the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts.

Ask yourselves the following question.

If IndyCar racing attracts so many spectators, then why is it being dropped by facilities that are in the business of promoting auto racing events? Why can't IndyCar earn a profit at the nearby Richmond International Raceway, or the Milwaukee Mile, one of the world's most historically relevant race tracks?

IndyCar racing is a market failure, a product that has been rejected by auto racing consumers in the United States. That is why it needs government subsidies for a minor league event at a glorified test track in Birmingham and for a contrived street festival in Baltimore.

This event will never be profitable, although the same might not be true of the promoter - that will depend on the amount of the government handout. Baltimore and the State of Maryland will subsidize this mediocrity every year for as long as it exists.

This IndyCar Series does not deserve the Milwaukee Mile. It certainly doesn't deserve to be bailed out by Maryland taxpayers.

Roggespierre

IndyCar Baltimore Attendance Increased to 150,000

Baltimore was one hot and humid city today. Hopefully, somebody will pour water on the crazy notion that the consumers in the former home of the Colts are nuts for IndyCar Racing. Apparently, the "feasibility study" found that 150,000 would converge on Charm City if only IndyCar racing, mass market phenomenon that it is, would come to town.

This area has much in common with the rest of the country. It is therefore probable that Greater Baltimore does not care about the present IndyCar product. The best hope for this event is that the locals think Al Unser, Jr. will actually drive in it. Little Al is recognized here. Danica, thanks to a strong activation effort by AirTran - big at BWI airport - is also well known.

Two stars - one retired and the other just as likely to be racing over in Dover in NASCAR next season. All other drivers combined? They're nobody here.

Maybe they think they'll get an "international audience" from DC. Think again, sirs. We live among them. They do not give a damn. The Brazilians at the embassy and the consulate know less than Americans about the Brazilian IndyCar drivers. The emigres here are diplomats and intellectuals. Do you really think they talk about IndyCar racing at the World Bank?

Indy Racing League - you have no market position. You have no fans. You must choose a market segment, serve it and serve it well, and let the others go. Try to get everybody and get nobody. Do you really want to see that at the Indy 500? That's where we're heading!

IndyCar: Life on the Street

This would be funny if it were not so depressing. Rather than price the IndyCar product at its market value, IRL Commercial Division head Terry Angstadt has written a letter to officials in Baltimore, effectively pleading with the city and the State of Maryland to subsidize a 2011 street race in Charm City.

"I am taking this opportunity," wrote Angstadt, "to convey to you, collectively, how interested the Indy Racing League is in the possibility that our organization would sanction an IndyCar Series event in Baltimore starting in 2011."

Roggespierre has, shall we say, contacts in and near Baltimore. They detect zero popular demand for this event. The IRL could have Barry Levinson direct the telecast, Tom Fontana and David Simon write the script, and Paul Attanasio serve as executive producer, and it would not matter. As we wrote previously, an all-city lacrosse tournament would achieve more.

Much of Baltimore still hates anything that has to do with "Indianapolis" and "horse power". Most Marylanders simply do not care about IndyCar racing. Baltimore is not desperate enough to get excited about hosting a downtown street race. The citizenry believes that Baltimore already is somewhere. The Ravens play there. The Orioles play there. The Wire was shot there.

But then, this isn't really about drawing fans, is it? It's about convincing the city and state to pay for a product that the market has rejected. Why change the IndyCar TEAM program to attract fans when you can get bailed out by local governments, at least for awhile?

The Republic understands - the teams want events like this. Anything to avoid market discipline, right?

Street races do not make money without government handouts. You don't believe us? Take a moment to peruse Case SPM-31A from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. You don't believe the pointy-headed types? We invite you to read what the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts has to say.

Notice that Long Beach claimed to generate only $20 million to $30 million per year from the Toyota Grand Prix, by all accounts the most successful temporary circuit in North America. Yet Baltimore expects to attract $100 million? How?

The principals of Baltimore Racing Development, LLC are Steven Wehner, an "entrepreneur" about whom little is known except that he owned a gas station on Martha's Vineyard at one time - we're not kidding - and Baltimore attorney Jay Davidson. But all parties implicitly admit that government money is paramount to the cause. These guys are so committed to Baltimore that they're already eyeing other east coast cities - just in case.

May we suggest Bridgeport, Connecticut? It's perfect - blighted, politically corrupt, and economically bankrupt despite being nestled in the middle of the Hedge Fund Hills of Fairfield County. It's as close to Manhattan as you'll ever put a race car. The late Paul Newman lived nearby and remains fantastically popular. Currently the host of no spectator events of note, Bridgeport is appropriately desperate. Like we said, it's perfect.

Or you could redesign the IndyCar product so that it might attract an audience at actual race tracks...

Nahhhhhhh.

Apologies to Theodoric of York

Roggespierre