06.22.2011
MOORESVILLE, N.C. — The following is select questions and answers from Tuesday’s teleconference with Jay Frye, Red Bull Racing Team vice president and general manager, regarding the future of the organization.
Q: Can you kind of talk about what are your options right now? What happens if you don’t find investors and can you say anything about how far along you are in the search for investors and/or sponsors.
A: Well, obviously, we’re very enthused and excited about some of the prospect and things we got going on. This process has really just started and there’s been a lot of inquiries really just based on what happened yesterday. In addition, there’s some other people we’re already talking to. So we’re very keen and very encouraged about the prospects of everything moving forward. Red Bull’s number one goal in this whole situation is that the team continues and, you know, on the path it’s currently on can help the legacy of Red Bull starting the team five years ago, that type of thing. So we’re very encouraged about what’s going on.
Q: Can you say will there be any Red Bull involvement as a sponsor or part owner after this year? A: It’s possible. At this point, we’re really not sure yet, it’s very possible that they can stay in the sport in some form.
It’s still unclear, you know, what will happen, when it will happen, what capacity it might happen, but it is possible.
Q: Can you talk about F1 and they were doing better over there with Red Bull and whether that figured into it? And then, “B,” talk about the health of the race team and the words of the race team right now, not in numbers, but in, you know, some investors definitely going to want to pick this up because dot, dot, dot.
A: Right. Well it really comes down to a business decision and how this all played out. It’s a change in strategy, no specific reason or specific situation, so that’s kind of where we’re at with that.
The team, you know it’s a very competitive Sprint Cup team that competes at a high level every week. It’s got a lot of great people here. It’s got a lot of great assets. There’s a lot of enthusiasm by Red Bull for us to continue. So there’s — there’s a lot of people looking and there’s a lot of interest in what we have and what we’ve done and where we’re going. So, again, we’re really encouraged about what could be next.
Obviously this — part of what’s going on is also somewhat sad. They were part of the Red Bull family. This is not a traditional sponsor who would just be possibly leaving the sport. You know, we’re part of Red Bull and part of the Red Bull company.
Having said that, you know, that’s also really good because, again, their number one goal is to see this thing through and to see the team continue and to see it with the right partner, investor, that type of thing that can, you know, help us take the team to the next level. And, again, to continue what they started.
Q: Can you talk about what you told the team members? Did you have a meeting? And how do you keep everybody intact while you finish out the season and secure investors?
A: We’re in a professional sport, and being in a professional sport, we’re all paid to perform and we’re paid to perform at a high level. So the better we do right now, the better everything will be, the better — you know this will take care of itself, basically. Obviously people want to be associated with winners. We think we’re winners and we think this is a
great opportunity for a partner to come in.
So, they understand that. They understand it’s about performing; it’s understanding that we’ve got to do our job. We’ve got to finish the season very strong. That’s obviously Red Bull’s wishes, too, that we’ve go to keep this thing going. We’ve got to finish the 2011 season on a high note.
We saw some opportunities coming up to possibly get in the Chase. We’ve got some great race tracks coming up for our teams. So we’re very excited about the short term.
Q: What about the pressure to perform? Aren’t you really also under pressure to perform reasonably quickly? If you’re going to hold this thing together, I guessing, the longer these discussion and if you don’t perform as folks think you should, then perhaps you’re going to be looking at people leaving the team and more disorder. Is that a part of this, too?
A: Well, the good news right now is we have time to react. It’s still just June, so that’s really time, obviously how our sport works, we’re halfway through the season, so that part’s concerning. But, again, over the last few days, week, whatever we said, some opportunities to talk to some people and that there seems to be great enthusiasm about what we’re doing and where we’re heading. And we’re very optimistic that we can put something together relatively quickly in the next … you hate to set a time line, 30 to 45 days, that type thing, where we could have some sort of good solution to this. So having been through this before, firstly, there was some contacts and some people we dealt with in the past who’ve been very helpful up to this point and I … there’s reason to be optimistic that we can get this thing sorted out.
Q: How is the dynamic of this being a sponsor-owned team creating different challenges based on your experience with it being more of a conventional model?
A: We’re in a conventional model mode right now, really because, obviously now, we’re out looking for sponsorship and we’re out looking for also a partner on the ownership side, so that’s the part that’s different.
But the main part right now is the traditional part that we have to have sponsorship and funding to operate next year. So again, with Red Bull’s assistance, which their obviously they’re very keen on keeping the team going and keeping the team pointed in the right direction, they will be a big help in acquiring that. And then also, again, not exactly sure what the possibilities are with them for next year, but there still are some possibilities that, you know, that Red Bull could be involved in some way.
Q: You’ve been through the fire with race teams before. I mean, do you lean on those experiences and relationships you’ve made through them in a case like this or does is this kind of an animal undo itself?
A: You certainly lean on everybody you’ve dealt with in the past. There’s a lot of people that were very instrumental in helping, you know, in different times over the past 10 years that have been called looking for advice, I’ve looked for advice. And they’ve been helpful at this point, with contacts and different things that we’ve got going on and again that’s part of the optimism and enthusiasm we have for the whole thing continuing.
Q: You said that a timeframe of 30 to 45 days, is that to find an investor? The timeframe that you’d like to find one in?
A: It’s hard to put a time on something like this, because then you set yourself up to fail. But hopefully over the next 30 to 45 days. We’re in some sort of talks with somebody that are legitimate talks that are trying to strike a deal talk, that type thing that we can be confident in going forward. And that we can also be confident in talking to others and
doing other things that we have to do. So it’s not necessarily, if it doesn’t happen by a certain date, that changes the outcome or changes our goal, it’s just hopefully we can have some sort of really good head start on getting a deal done by then.
Q: From just from a local kind of economy perspective, can you say how many employees you have at Red Bull Racing and what do you tell them when they ask maybe about their job status come November?
A: Obviously we have talked to the team about what’s going on and everybody has … we’re all in this together and it behooves us all to perform and to keep going and to keep this team going and keep this company going. So there, everybody’s lined up, we’re all on the same page and we’re excited about what’s possible over the next few weeks and we’re excited about the future with this team and this company.
So, the company’s changing, you know, it is what it is and now we have to react.
Employee wise, you know, we’re in the 150 to 200 range of people, which is the standard two-car Cup team. We’re serious about making sure that we move forward and we’re excited about the prospects.
Q: I was wondering if you can characterize who you’ve had talks with so far, you know, whether they’re in the sport, out of the sport?
A: Oh, most of them are out of the sport. Or actually, they’ve all been out of the sport at this point. So it’s — this is one of the things that happens with the sport. You know, there’s sponsors that times come and go, owners come and go, owners come and go, new ones come in and people come back and, you know, that type of thing. So this is a situation, hopefully, that’s part of our enthusiasm, we can bring some new folks in — new ideas, new ways of maybe doing things. So that’s a good part of our enthusiasm with the groups that we’re talking to.
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