NHRA does not own the Pomona track. They own the buildings but not the land. Back in 1993 they spent around 5 million building the tower and suites, a huge sound wall and grandstands that hold 40K people. At the time they received a 15 year lease for the race track from the LA county fairground commission. I have no idea how long the current lease is but I would assume they have a yearly lease payment of some sort. They are only allowed to race twice a year so except for the Winter nats and world finals there is no income from the track

I remember sitting in a bus at the head of the staging lanes with 4 or 5 guys talking drag racing at the Gators in 1997 or 98. Joe Amato had just walked away after speaking with the owner of the bus through the side window. There was 43 Pro Stockers, 31 Top Fuel and 29 Fuel coups trying to qualify 16 car fields. Place was packed on a Thursday they used to make one qualifier on Thursday. The owner of the bus who paid NHRA for a spot at the head of the staging lanes says out of no where "this is a big nut for the NHRA to crack with all the tracks they own now, I hope nothing ever goes wrong" Because I was young I thought the mans mind was slipping, it's what I wanted to believe, he was wrong. That was just my wishful immature thinking. There was more spectators that year on a Thursday , than there was the last Gatornationals I attended on Sunday. Guess who came to mind?

I hope NHRA isn't carrying debt based on Thurday through Sunday turnouts from 97.

It's always the debt that gets ya, it's like playing musical chairs, too much and eventually you get left without a chair.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Mike Rietow,

Years ago when NHRA started increasing license fees, got rid of the book, went to the stupid challenge championship, I said then that this was simply a situation of squeezing ever last drop of profit out of an organization.

To my knowledge, it is still has a For Sale sign hung on it and that's been there for years.

Will NHRA be around for a bit - you can bet on it. They're not finished turning the squeeze press on this deal just yet but don't kid yourself, it is going to end.

Big Steve, the Pomona lease has 14 days of racing which lets extend races if necessary or some other organization put on a race there

Earlier in this thread I posted a payout list from 2000. Force and Scelzi made over 800k. There was 37 drivers that made over 100k totalling $10.68M.

323 racers made between 500 and 99,000

This was 20yrs ago!!!

One of the coolest Pomona was when LaHaie (Miller beer) ran Amato in the Top Fuel final for the Top Fuel championship. Epic!

LaHaie always had the nicest looking cars. Clean.

just more talk more opinion from those that don't race at NHRA National events but think they know.

quote:

Originally posted by Lucky Scott Hudson:
Prize money is not important to the pros. TV exposure is what matters because the sponsors want to see them on TV. All the teams depend on sponsors, not prize money, to pay the bills.

EXACTLY right, and true in EVERY major form of motorsports.

quote:

Originally posted by 1320racer:
NO ONE competing at an NHRA National event in any class is doing it for the $.

Correct. Anybody that races purely for prize money has rocks in their head.

Filing chapter 11 isn't the end of the world for NHRA anyway, it's a reorganization.

Looks like NHRA has already started reorganizing eh?

The reorganization NHRA has done thus far, won't affect the local level.

Unless the local level is out of gas-$$ too.

What is the NHRA' s product?

Part of the issue will certainly be how teams are paid, including the drivers. Some have skin in the game with the prize money. That will hit some more than others. Another bluntly put point is that the teams that would most greatly be affected by the small loss of revenue, aren't tasting the big money at the races anyhow as a rule.


As far as boycotting them: Well what good comes from that? THE VENUE you have to conduct your business in....and you want to boycott it? Again this money is a drop in the bucket for most teams. It isn't about prize money for them. It's about sponsorship, and that is their lifeblood. Period. These times are tough on everybody and everybody gets a bite of that sh1t sandwich. Now, would it be a good gesture for NHRA employees especially at the top, to take a pay cut during these times? you bet. They aren't that caliber of organization though.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Bucky,

In 2021 Jack Beckman and Tommy Johnson are out of a ride unless they secure sponsorship over the Winter. With the current conditions (Covid and the recession) that prospect isn't looking very promising. That loss reduces the Fuel Funny car fields by another two. All in all, the NHRA Fuel Show next season looks a bit grim.

Doug Foley may be correct.

Bob

quote:

Originally posted by RPROGAS:
In 2021 Jack Beckman and Tommy Johnson are out of a ride unless they secure sponsorship over the Winter. With the current conditions (Covid and the recession) that prospect isn't looking very promising. That loss reduces the Fuel Funny car fields by another two. All in all, the NHRA Fuel Show next season looks a bit grim.

Doug Foley may be correct.

Bob

What recession? We're in a V shaped recovery!

V for Venezuela.

Ya'll keep buying that chinese chit making a few people billionaires and everyone else as poor as the exploited chinese slave labor , it'll turn into a shootout in the streets eventually. Which will be fine with them anyway!!

I Told ya 20 years ago!

quote:

Originally posted by Bucky:
As far as boycotting them: Well what good comes from that? THE VENUE you have to conduct your business in....and you want to boycott it? Again this money is a drop in the bucket for most teams. It isn't about prize money for them. It's about sponsorship, and that is their lifeblood. Period.

You might be right if NHRA hasn’t already presented these cuts to PRO and been rejected, with no further dialogue. The teams are the show and hold all the cards for the success of NHRA. That isn’t to say they were correct to reject the deal, but if they did and NHRA rammed it through with no consequence, that sends a pretty clear message to NHRA that they can just do whatever they want.

If the Pro classes implode, NHRA will do what the IHRA did, run the other classes.

NHRA didn't cut the purse because they wanted to, they cut the purse because they couldn't afford to get themselves in a position where they couldn't fulfill their obligations (make payout).

Boycotts are of no consequence to NHRA.

When their sponsorship deal says you have to show at X amount of races and the race calendar already cut down I wonder if any or all of them can boycott and skip a race?

Doug Foley hasn’t raced in 10 years, goes to one race and he’s a expert

quote:

Originally posted by maliciousintent:
What is the NHRA' s product?

RACERS. With out Racers they have nothing.

For what it's worth, I heard from someone "in the know" that NHRA executives took a 25% pay cut back in March of this year.