RWWA’s Post

Are Formula One Fans Being Ripped Off? An online post today caught my attention. The event organizers of the British Formula One Grand Prix to be held at Silverstone in the UK on July 7th have stated that they are struggling to sell tickets for this years event, and they believe it is because of the #redbullracing dominance this season. Well let's debunk that myth that people don't want to watch Red Bull win again. 1. Ticket Prices. The picture below is a ticket to this years British Formula One Grand Prix for a family of 4 to attend for 3 days. Thats right, nearly three and a half thousand quid for a Mum, Dad and two little ones to go along to watch racing cars race around a track. Couldn't be the price of admission that are stopping people from buying tickets could it? 2. Competitive Racing. Unlike last season when we did witness a Red Bull domination, in the last few races of this season we have in fact seen 4 different drivers from 4 different teams win races. This close racing is exactly what fans want to see, and therefore his surely could not be the reason for people not buying tickets to the British F1 GP. Formula One has for a long time been perceived to be a sport for the wealthy, both to participate in, as well as to watch live. What we are seeing these days is the impact of Liberty Media's impact on managing the sport, the tremendous growth that it is experiencing across the world, and their ability to charge what fans will pay. In the other races in this year to date the Grandstands have been full and this seemingly isolated situation in the UK must be more aligned to the entry level prices charged by the organizer. Oh, while I am here, I will point out to the man who purchased this ticket, you could drop the kids off at the Grandparents for that weekend, fly yourself and the wife to NZ, and watch the All Blacks thump England in rugby for the same price. #formula1 #sportstickets #marketconditions #events

Spring Carnival 2023- with Everest last week and now leading into Caulfield Cup Cox Plate and Melbourne Cup week - this is peak wagering time for Tabcorp. But they seem to have the strategy all wrong - new ads that look like cheap Sportsbet ads that even Ladbrokes Australia are taking the piss out of with clever use of Red v Green. But more importantly why would you think it is a good idea to focus your promotional activity on fixed odds betting. Large fields,iconic races you logically should be luring punters into each way, a quinella trifecta or First Four. It seems the management and the board have an aversion to tote punting - as evidenced by the lack of innovation in this area. Rather than being slowly reactive to the corporates who only have fixed odds (or best tote which is now largely irrelevant) they should be focusing as per the strategic plan and looking to “dominate” racing leveraging off sponsorship exclusivities, race club relationships and iconic races of FTA TV such as the Melbourne Cup. Not the $50 bonus bet every weekend fodder- happy to discuss and commercially debate. Bruce Akhurst Janette Kendall Adam Rytenskild

F1 Under Liberty Media / F.I.A Current Rule Makers Is A ( JOKE !!! ) Bring Back The Days Of Ecclestone / Mosley. They Had There Issues Nothing Like Now. We are only two races in this season, and apparently it is going to be a major fiasco already. With the number of races added to the calendar, and a team like williams have no spare chassis , with additional silly street tracks like Miami /Vegas, what does that say about Liberty Media. All they care about is increasing market values and hipping up the true value of the teams. Now let's go to F.I.A ,the Australian G.P, penalizing Alonso for unsafe driving, with additional license fines for simply doing what any. CLUB or PROFESSIONAL Formula racer would do is to understand there weakness at a specific point on the track under the condition they are in forcing the overtaking driver to make a maneuver more difficult. It's Russells responsibility to recognise his given position on the track and consequences of following to closely losing front downforce. As a driver that is suppose to be the best at what he does he made a mistake and admitted it. However the F.I.A decided to step in and a judgment call overruling Russells own admission. This is crazy!! passing out penalties for just about everything, track limits, pit limits, changing the results of a race is unheard of. "penalties' should be rolled over to the next race and assessed based on starting grid positions" One only can imagine what is coming up next for the Japanese G.P and all other races. This Power Grab Of The Sport With Haphazard Rule Making Is Killing F1.

HE LOST 19,000 TIMES! A young jockey lost his first race, his second, his third, his first 10, his first 20. But he was Relentless. He lost his first 100 races, his first 200 races, but he Bounced Back…and lost 50 more. After 250 straight loses, Eddie Arcaro won his first race in 1932. He went on to become the most famous jockey of his era, winning the most money four times over 8 years. Eddie Arcaro rode 250 losers before he won his first race. The Relentless Eddie won 5 Derby winners, 6 in the Preakness and 6 in the Belmont Stakes for a total of 17 Triple Crowns and purse winnings of over $30 million. Eddie rode in over 24,000 races… winning over 4700…which means he lost over 19,000 times. One of the greatest jockeys in history LOST 81% of his races… and is considered great, because he continually Bounced Back! How many times have we failed… or felt like we’ve failed… and wanted to quit or give up? What if after the 100th…175th…or 250th loss, Eddie decided not to get on another horse? Nobody cares how many times we’ve failed, it’s not PROOF that we will fail the next time! Almost nothing works the first time it’s attempted. Just because what we’re doing doesn’t seem to be working, doesn’t mean it won’t work. It just means that it might not work the way we’re doing it. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it and we wouldn’t have an opportunity. An Old Chinese saying says, “The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed.” What isn’t working right now? Write it down. Maybe you need to keep doing it to gain success. #Success #Relentless #EddieArcaro

How cool would it be if Monaco F1 Grand Prix Champion Juan Pablo Montoya became a part-owner of your business? Awesome to see this happen for Brane 👏 It all comes down to the mission and vision of your company. Michael Chmielewski and the team at Brane are tackling this with a clever approach to AI-Powered Social Discovery & Community Building. Brane is currently seeking expressions of interest from prospective investors in their exciting startup. For more, check out their listing on Birchal. The link is below. Always consider the general CSF risk warning and offer document before investing. #communitysoftware #AI #startups #crowdfunding

The long-awaited 44th edition of the biennial Ryder Cup returns to Europe (Sept. 29 to Sunday, Oct. 1) at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome, Italy. Founded in 1927 as a match-play tournament between the US and Great Britain, the competition pits the best golfers from the United States against their European counterparts in a pressure-cooker format. It’s a master class in course and team management, strategy, tactics, gamesmanship—and mind games—where fervent fans cheer bad shots and missed putts. Although the United States leads the series 27-14, the era of American domination is long past. In fact, the US team hasn’t won on European soil in 25 years. Pressure? Yes, indeed. That’s the opposite of this matchup of six international homes (three in the United States and three in Europe) that offer world-class golf just steps from the fairways—with all the creature comforts of home.

Karting risks losing its unique identity at the altar of Formula 1. Sheila Van Damn, a respected '50s rally driver, and owner of the Windmill Theatre in London, had an all-female kart team. They were captured on TV driving karts around London in the early '60s. Delve deeper, and you'll uncover remarkable anecdotes like competitors driving road-registered karts to competitions. Did you also know that karting used to have several events on the Isle of Man? Sure, you might have caught a video of the Peel GP that circulated a few years ago, but did you know about the Douglas GP and the Southern 100 kart races? Did you know karting has had a female FIA World Champion and multiple female top-level drivers? Even the silver screen holds secrets, with the van in "The Italian Job" belonging to actor David Salamone, doubling as his cherished karting transport. Did you know the Karting World Championship had a round on the streets of Monaco in 1967? Did you know the Heysham Head World Cup was sponsored by John Player and would attract over 20,000 spectators each year? Did you know that Silverstone hosted the SuperKart GP in the 80s, which had hundreds of entries and thousands of spectators? Did you know the last race at Crystal Palace was a kart event? These quirks of karting barely touch the sides of its rich and illustrious history. Almost every other day, something will pop up on the British Historic Kart Club’s Facebook page where someone will post a story about karting that will leave you asking, “How did I not know about this? Karting is amazing!” Despite these treasures, Karting's identity faces erosion as Formula 1's allure intensifies. In the wake of viral incidents, such as the misconceived altercation in 2020, Karting struggles against misrepresentation. As Formula 1 secures and entrenches its dominant place within motorsport, a sport like karting can easily find itself drowned. The sport's top events are now very much starting to look like Formula 5, and the governing bodies don’t seem bothered at all. Is there a way out for karting? It seems unlikely, but I wholeheartedly recommend diving into the various historic karting groups; you’ll never know what you might find.

READY, SET, GO! We're thrilled to announce that Superior Installations and Equipment is now an official sponsor of Scott 'Skip' Maclean and his incredible race team Scott Maclean Racing! The team's race category is Improved Production (or IPRA) entered into the Victorian State Circuit Racing Championship. 🚗💨 As passionate supporters of local talent and adrenaline-fueled endeavors, we couldn't be more excited to partner up with Skip as he revs up for an unforgettable season on the track. Check out some great images of Skip competing here @Winton-Raceway and get ready to witness the power of finesse and performance as Skip takes on the competition, fueled by our shared commitment to excellence and innovation. Together, we're gearing up for victory! Skip's story is all about overcoming the odds after being paralysed due to a snowboarding accident almost 14 years ago and being told he would never walk again. He's defied the odds! His attitude is all about changing the mindset from saying, "why" to "WHY NOT"? - whether it's on the track, or in life! And we couldn't agree more 👏👏 Next round will be at the end of June (28th to 30th) at Phillip Island, where Skip's goal is a top ten finish and a personal best time around the circuit. Join us in cheering on Skip and @ScottMacleanRacing as they dominate the racetrack and inspire us all to push the limits. Stay tuned for thrilling updates, behind-the-scenes action, and exclusive insights into this electrifying partnership. Let's hit the gas and make every moment count! 🏁💪 #SuperiorRacing #ScottMacleanRacing #ScottMaclean #Sponsorship #SpeedDemons #RaceDayReady 🚦🏎️

Last week's 150th running of the Kentucky Derby had us all on the edge of our seats, with Mystik Dan's breathtaking victory stealing the spotlight and captivating the horse racing world. As expected, social media was buzzing with discussions after that thrilling photo finish, but amidst the excitement, one key element often gets overlooked – the jockeys. Despite hundreds of thousands of posts flooding social media about the Kentucky Derby, only a mere 9,348 mentioned the race's jockeys. While this isn't insignificant and could hold some marketability value, it's surprising how little attention jockeys receive compared to athletes in other sports during their big moments. There's a real opportunity for jockeys to enhance their marketability. Consider this: the horse racing industry is projected to reach a staggering $812.48 billion market size by 2030. With jockeys' unique blend of skills – from understanding horse behavior and psychology, to their athleticism, and the vast resources available in such a large industry, the potential for them to build personal brands is truly fascinating. Even in their current position, jockeys could offer value to brands and potentially provide a significant return on investment as the sport continues to grow. However, any sponsorship arrangement must make sense for both parties, ensuring that the brand's audience aligns with the jockey's fan base. As we celebrate Mystik Dan's victory and the enduring outcome of the 150th Kentucky Derby, it's crucial to highlight these discussions and potential opportunities. With the Preakness Stakes on May 18th marking the next leg of the Triple Crown, all eyes will once again be on Mystik Dan and jockey Brian Hernandez Jr, presenting another chance to make waves in the world of horse racing. #KentuckyDerby #HorseRacing #Marketability #sportsbiz