TONY’S BUSINESS DECISION
We’ve been on vacation so I’ve been a little neglectful about writing. But the last couple of days I’ve been thinking about Tony Stewart’s dilemma — you know, whether to stay with a winning team (think, two Sprint Cup Championships) or buy into a second-tier (hey, we all know that) team. What I’ve been thinking about is how I made my decision to stay or leave my position as chair of the Department of Management back in 1992 — I made a list of pros and cons (and, in my case, the “cons” won out).
So here goes:
Pros: He’s part-owner and has some say in the operations. Hendrick makes the engines. He’s back driving Chevys. He’s part-owner and has some say……got the idea?
Cons: He leaves a team that gave him his start and supported his two championship runs. He leaves a team that has, arguably, one of the most honest, straightforward owners in racing and one who has defended Tony on many occasions. He leaves a team that probably has the greatest potential in the coming years as any team currently running — Kyle, Denny, and most likely Joey — and he can be the “poppa” figure directing their climb to fame. He’s part of a stable that has the top running racer in the Sprint series — and that can mean continued sources of shared information.
Now the business part — which is the real essence of Tony’s decision. He’s buying into a second- to third-tier team (sorry, but when have they been consistent winners?). Who has the seven post shaker rig? Where’s the wind tunnel time? And, most importantly, how much R&D money will trickle down to Tony’s team given the economic times and Motor City’s need to ration its resources when it comes to NASCAR teams (remember Hendrick and Childress?)?
Geez, don’t you think Gillett/Evernham is worried? And Ganassi with his Reed “here’s your pink slip” Sorenson, Dario “this looked easy” Franchitti, and Juan “I’m looking at an oval win” Montoya isn’t real sure about Chrysler. Even Toyota announced that it’s revising its sales goals for 2009, in light of economic conditions, so what’s that say about its involvement?
Tony’s no novice when it comes to business. But, really, is this the time for Tony to “go on his own?" I certainly don’t know — but again, that’s the view from here.
Jon
P.S.: If I were a betting man (and I’ve played the lottery so that tells you something about why I seldom bet!), I’d put my money on Tony leaving JGR. Why, even though I make a pretty solid argument for staying? Because Tony is his “own man” — Tony believes what he wants, says what he wants, and does what he wants — and I think he wants to show everyone that he can DO what he wants.