(by Obi wan crapwagon.com 5-3-11)
Think R.M.S. Titanic; the fourth water-tight compartment has just flooded and the ship is going down. The question is: do you (a) buy stock in the White Star Line, the ship’s owners, or do you (b) stand as close as you can get to one of the few lifeboats?
It’s called minimal exposure.
The Hulman-Georges made all the decisions where the new car was concerned; they didn’t consult the owners (i.e. the customers) but instead specified the entire 2012 car themselves to meet their own perceived needs. Cotman finally admitted a couple of weeks ago that the aero kit “business” was a sham; instead it’s an elaborate “branding and marketing” scheme to promote the Hulman-Georges’ troubled property. According to Cotman there was only enough actual business for one firm to make a profit and the Family decided long before the rubber-stamp MORONIC committee was formed that Dallara would get the business. The Italian car maker has been handed the chassis and aero kit business on a platter; having been guaranteed the entire chassis (“safety cell”) business for good and the aero kit business until at least May 2012. For everyone else it is a money-losing proposition, which according to Cotman “must be entered into for the right reason” (that being costly advertising).
Pimpski is just giving them a dose of reality. In a quasi-free-market economy it is the customer who is usually in charge of purchasing decisions. In the skewed world of the arrogant Hulman-Georges, they want to make all the decisions for “their” motor sport but have the team owners pay for them. That isn’t going to happen with businessmen like F@tassi (of the DeltaWing) and Pimpski. Now the shoe is on the other foot: the tyrants at 16th & Jonestown and their allies in Italy are going to have to sweat it out and see if the owners are going to buy the 2012 car; if not, it is the H-G’s name on all the contracts and it is they and their cronies (like Dallara) who will take a financial bath.
No aero kits until 2013 means no owner/manufacturer commitments until much closer to 2013 and no $200,000-$250,000 fees paid to the Pagoda. That sum pales in comparison, however, to the $5 million+ that a committed aero kit manufacturer would have had to sink into its product; which they can now “save.” Now, the Pimp and his clients get to stand on the sideline and see if the Rodeo Clown can manage to save the league before they invest a dime in new equipment. As I said last week, all Pimpski has to do to topple the league is refuse to buy the 2012 car for himself and GM. Then Berkman and Honda will “disappoint” themselves to the exit sign and save a ton of money better spent on disaster relief in Japan.
One interesting tidbit in the article is that John Judd’s company is apparently going to supply the “Lotus” engine, and not Kalkoven’s Cosworth. So, not even the turncoat Amigo was stupid enough to invest his own skin in the H-G's rigged game.
Lovin’ it!
JMO
P.S. HPD's Berkman is blowing smoke; Honda was the last manufacturer to "commit" to making an aero kit. This was only a couple of weeks ago. Berkman (and HPD) is another Pagoda favorite who was going to get a leg up on all the other manufacturers by having a Honda engine power the testing prototype. Thus, the (production) prototype would be tailor made for the Honda powerplant and everyone else would have to play catch-up. My guess is that Berkman et al planned on keeping the current Honda-Dallara arrangement; with the stock Dallara used as the "Honda" with the judicious application of some decals and/or stickers.
