The Blueprint For Funding the Juncos Hollinger Racing IndyCar Team: How to Find the Right Investor
When most people think of funding a race team, they think of sponsor logos on rear wings and energy drink decals on helmets.
But what Juncos Hollinger Racing (JHR) needs right now is different, and more complex.
According to Racer.com, team co-owner Brad Hollinger is looking for additional investment to secure the long-term future of a team he’s already stabilized once by stepping in with his own capital when others wouldn’t.
But this isn’t about landing a blockbuster sponsorship deal, in other words the traditional motorsport playbook.
Hollinger is pursuing something fewer teams attempt, but which carries far greater potential impact: bringing in an equity partner, someone to co-own, and therefore help chart JHR’s long-term competitive trajectory.
Platform Wars: What Video Game Consoles Can Teach Us About Motorsports Regulations In the WEC and WRC
Like consoles, motorsport series must offer a compelling environment for their “developers”, the manufacturers and teams that bring the show to life.
In the console world, platform owners want to secure exclusive titles to entice players to buy their console, and this can be the reality in racing as well, with major brands often wanting or needing to prioritize among several motorsports options. And just like Sony and Microsoft fought to win over developers, the WEC and WRC are competing for factory support.
Part 3 - The Case Study - Drive To Survive: WEC Edition
The WEC doesn’t need reinvention, it needs translation, and a Drive to Survive-style series would provide not only the perfect educational format for a potential audience, but also the catalyst for changes within the series itself to make it more accessible, while keeping all the elements that make it unique in place.
Indeed, the challenge isn’t to overhaul the series from scratch, but to repackage it with intention, and a Drive to Survive-style series is the perfect opportunity to educate future audiences in an engaging way that makes them want to engage further with the WEC.
Part 2 - The Tradeoff - Drive To Survive: To Grow, You Have to Let Go
Hardcore fans don’t scale. They retain, and retention is not the same as expansion.
This is the problem that has plagued series like WRC and IndyCar. Their fans are knowledgeable, passionate, and loyal, but they’re not the future (if they were, there wouldn’t be nearly as much hand-wringing about where these series are headed).
Designing your product (your broadcast, branding, social content, format) to please them is like designing a smartphone for flip phone users.
You’re locking yourself into yesterday’s potential.
This isn’t always intentional. In many cases, the issue is that no one has clearly defined what growth looks like and where it should be headed.
So the default becomes: “Let’s not upset the base.”
But if you haven’t identified who your growth audience is, and what they expect, then you’re not just failing to attract new fans. You’re actively reinforcing the ceiling above you.