It should come as no surprise to anybody that Dale Earnhardt Jr. earns more money than any other driver in NASCAR. Or that the next two highest earning drivers are his teammates -- Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson.
Or that the sport's wealthiest team is Hendrick Motorsports, which employs all three.
Forbes magazine has released its sixth annual list of driver earnings and team valuations that shows the average team is worth $136 million and generated an average of $89 million in revenue last year.
But team values fell 5% on average as sponsors continue to pull back during the recession. It also shows the huge decrease in the value of Richard Petty Motorsports, which fell $52 million after suffering financial hardships last year before the team's namesake was able to gain control of it.
For the drivers, earnings come in a variety of ways. Some of it is in the form of salary from teams but a big chunk comes from endorsement deals.
Top 10 earning drivers
Rank/Driver/Earnings/Team
1. Dale Earnhardt Jr. / $29 million / Hendrick Motorsports
2. Jeff Gordon / $25 million / Hendrick Motorsports
3. Jimmie Johnson / $24 million / Hendrick Motorsports
4. Tony Stewart / $18 million / Stewart-Haas Racing
5. Kevin Harvick / $15 million / Richard Childress Racing
6. Carl Edwards / $14 million / Roush-Fenway Racing
7. Kyle Busch / $13 million / Joe Gibbs Racing
8. Kasey Kahne / $11.5 million / Red Bull Racing
9. Denny Hamlin / $11 million / Joe Gibbs Racing
9. Matt Kenseth / $11 million / Roush-Fenway Racing
Top 10 most valuable teams
Rank/Team/Value/1-year change
1. Hendrick Motorsports / $350 million / $0
2. Roush Fenway Racing / $224 million / -6
3. Richard Childress Racing / $158 million / 3
4. Joe Gibbs Racing / $152 million / 6
5. Penske Racing / $100 million / -9
6. Stewart-Haas Racing / $95 million / -3
7. Michael Waltrip Racing / $90 million / 2
8. Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing / $76 million / 7
9. Richard Petty Motorsports / $60 million / -52
10. Red Bull Racing / $58 milion / -2
Monday, February 28, 2011
Friday, February 18, 2011
A Lot Of Talent...A Minor Realignment...Stay tuned for all the results on Sunday at DAYTONA!!
All eyes will be on the teams from Hendrick Motorsports for sure this weekend. There have been some behind the scences changes according to this article from SpeedTV. Let's see how it all turns out on SUNDAY!!!! We'll be watching...Will You?
Hendrick Team Confident Of Changes Hendrick Motorsports switched crew chiefs on
three of its four teams for 2011... Tom Jensen Posted January 30, 2011 Charlotte, NC
(Left to Right) Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, team owner Rick Hendrick, Mark Martin, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. , shown during the NASCAR Sprint Media Tour at Hendrick Motorsports on January 26, 2011. (Photo: Getty Images)
When Jimmie Johnson won his fifth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championship last November, it somewhat obscured the fact that the rest of his teammates at Hendrick Motorsports suffered through disappointing 2010 seasons.Maybe the rest of the world saw another Johnson championship, but internally, the team knew that their performance was off.Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon, three drivers who collectively have 140 Sprint Cup victories, went winless in 2010, and team owner Rick Hendrick recognized that he needed to do something and do it quickly.And so, 48 hours after Johnson’s record victory, Hendrick dropped a bombshell: Gordon would be pulled out of the shop he and Johnson had shared since 2002, with Earnhardt moving in and teaming up there with crew chief Steve Letarte, who had been Gordon’s pit boss since late in the 2005 season.Gordon moved over into the other team’s shop, picking up Alan Gustafson as his crew chief and sharing the building with Mark Martin and his new crew chief, Lance McGrew, who formerly worked with Earnhardt. It was a bold step, but one Hendrick thought was necessary. From a technology standpoint, the team was not as quick to adapt to the changeover from rear wing to spoiler as some of the other teams were, and he felt the organization had perhaps grown a little complacent as well. Having made the change, though, Hendrick said he’s pleased by the new energy his team is demonstrating. “It’s awesome to start the New Year,” said Hendrick. “I don’t think as an organization we were as strong as the competition. We were thinking about it during the year and selecting the lineup. We didn’t want to go outside the walls. All of our employees show and do their best. I think we will have a good year and that we will all work together, and I will be happy. I have a lot of confidence in the organization.”The combinations are intriguing: According to Hendrick, Letarte has the best interpersonal skills among the crew chiefs, something Earnhardt should respond well to. By the same token, Gustafson is a talented and sophisticated engineer, which ought to benefit the experienced Gordon. And although they would never say so publicly, Martin and McGrew probably feel like they have something to prove after last year, when McGrew was pilloried for Earnhardt’s woes and Martin was wrongly rumored to be on his way out in 2011 to make room for Kasey Kahne, who will join the team in 2012. Today, no one knows how the combinations will fare once the season begins. But the team members believe the changes will be good.Gordon, the most senior of the four drivers, said Hendrick did what he had to do. “A lot of changes, but I think a lot of positive changes,” said Gordon. “I think sometimes things need to be shaken up a bit, and I think that was Rick’s goal with this move, the internal move.”Gordon feels his old crew chief and Earnhardt could be a potent force. “They’re going to mesh up very well together,” Gordon said of Earnhardt and Letarte. “Steve has a lot of personality. He’s a real people person. He knows how to read people. He knows how to motivate people.
“Every one of our crew chiefs has their certain strengths. ... It’s pretty well known that Dale is pretty quiet and I think, kind of like opposites attracting, I think they’re going to be really good for one another.”Earnhardt, too, is bullish.“I’m thankful to have the opportunity in this sport that I have,” he said. This is the best of my career. I’m looking forward to just getting started. We had a good Daytona test in January. We have seen all the teams practice well. A lot of the work goes on in the shop, and you don’t see it, so I think we have a good opportunity. I think the more we are around the race car, the better we can be for the season. We have to understand what makes each of us tick a little better.”
Hendrick Team Confident Of Changes Hendrick Motorsports switched crew chiefs on
three of its four teams for 2011... Tom Jensen Posted January 30, 2011 Charlotte, NC(Left to Right) Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, team owner Rick Hendrick, Mark Martin, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. , shown during the NASCAR Sprint Media Tour at Hendrick Motorsports on January 26, 2011. (Photo: Getty Images)
When Jimmie Johnson won his fifth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championship last November, it somewhat obscured the fact that the rest of his teammates at Hendrick Motorsports suffered through disappointing 2010 seasons.Maybe the rest of the world saw another Johnson championship, but internally, the team knew that their performance was off.Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon, three drivers who collectively have 140 Sprint Cup victories, went winless in 2010, and team owner Rick Hendrick recognized that he needed to do something and do it quickly.And so, 48 hours after Johnson’s record victory, Hendrick dropped a bombshell: Gordon would be pulled out of the shop he and Johnson had shared since 2002, with Earnhardt moving in and teaming up there with crew chief Steve Letarte, who had been Gordon’s pit boss since late in the 2005 season.Gordon moved over into the other team’s shop, picking up Alan Gustafson as his crew chief and sharing the building with Mark Martin and his new crew chief, Lance McGrew, who formerly worked with Earnhardt. It was a bold step, but one Hendrick thought was necessary. From a technology standpoint, the team was not as quick to adapt to the changeover from rear wing to spoiler as some of the other teams were, and he felt the organization had perhaps grown a little complacent as well. Having made the change, though, Hendrick said he’s pleased by the new energy his team is demonstrating. “It’s awesome to start the New Year,” said Hendrick. “I don’t think as an organization we were as strong as the competition. We were thinking about it during the year and selecting the lineup. We didn’t want to go outside the walls. All of our employees show and do their best. I think we will have a good year and that we will all work together, and I will be happy. I have a lot of confidence in the organization.”The combinations are intriguing: According to Hendrick, Letarte has the best interpersonal skills among the crew chiefs, something Earnhardt should respond well to. By the same token, Gustafson is a talented and sophisticated engineer, which ought to benefit the experienced Gordon. And although they would never say so publicly, Martin and McGrew probably feel like they have something to prove after last year, when McGrew was pilloried for Earnhardt’s woes and Martin was wrongly rumored to be on his way out in 2011 to make room for Kasey Kahne, who will join the team in 2012. Today, no one knows how the combinations will fare once the season begins. But the team members believe the changes will be good.Gordon, the most senior of the four drivers, said Hendrick did what he had to do. “A lot of changes, but I think a lot of positive changes,” said Gordon. “I think sometimes things need to be shaken up a bit, and I think that was Rick’s goal with this move, the internal move.”Gordon feels his old crew chief and Earnhardt could be a potent force. “They’re going to mesh up very well together,” Gordon said of Earnhardt and Letarte. “Steve has a lot of personality. He’s a real people person. He knows how to read people. He knows how to motivate people.
“Every one of our crew chiefs has their certain strengths. ... It’s pretty well known that Dale is pretty quiet and I think, kind of like opposites attracting, I think they’re going to be really good for one another.”Earnhardt, too, is bullish.“I’m thankful to have the opportunity in this sport that I have,” he said. This is the best of my career. I’m looking forward to just getting started. We had a good Daytona test in January. We have seen all the teams practice well. A lot of the work goes on in the shop, and you don’t see it, so I think we have a good opportunity. I think the more we are around the race car, the better we can be for the season. We have to understand what makes each of us tick a little better.”
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Customer Satisfaction - The Honda Cars of Bradenton Way
Looking back can be inspirational at times. This post may be dated but the underlying message remains the same. Here at Honda Cars of Bradenton we measure and monitor Customer Satisfaction daily. And the Hendrick Culture contributes immensely to our success...and most importantly to our Cutomers' Satisfaction.
Success Lessons From The World Of NASCAR
A recent edition of USA Today (November 6, 2009) ran an article about the consistent success of Hendrick Motorsports’ NASCAR teams. Some would say domination is a better word than consistent success, given that they are closing in on their fourth consecutive NASCAR championship (perhaps taking 1st, 2nd and 3rd). The article is titled, “Happy in the Workplace – Hendricks Motorsports’ people skills key success,” and it provides some lessons that any organization, whether in sport or the business world, can learn from.
General Manager, Marshall Carlson says there are four keys to their success: “Talent, unity, speed, and focus, and all four are about people, not technology or widgets.” Where some teams look to cut costs on hotels and food for their traveling teams (consider that these teams are on the road for at least 36 weekends per year), Hendrick Motorsport “views booking quality hotels and catering healthy meals as essential as top-notch equipment.” In other words, looking after their people.
While most race team managers come from within the sport, Carlson came from Hendrick’s auto dealership empire. He views the running of the race teams no different from running of a car dealership. “They’re a lot less different than you’d think, because the culture is very much aligned.”
“A lot of car dealers put the customer first. At Hendrick Automotive Group, the employee is No. 1 and they’ll take care of the customers because happy customers keep the manufacturers happy. It’s same with the team. We feel if we have smart and talented people happy to be there, we’ll run well. If we run well, the sponsors will be happy. Even in a sport where the technology is very important, the difference is the human capital.”
“Anything that touches people takes precedent, whether it’s food, travel, uniforms, working conditions or health insurance,” he said. “That’s contrary to how some organizations work.”
Hmmm… Happy employees. Ensuring employees are happy is the number one priority, assuming that if they are, they will make sure the customer is happy.
How many companies claim that people are their number one resource, and yet don’t back that up with their actions. In fact, having facilitated strategic planning sessions for companies, I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve heard senior management make that claim, and yet heard from employees that it’s not true. Leaders claiming that employees are most important, and yet acting as though they are really a distant second – or third, fourth, or worse – to anything that leads to short-term financial results seems to be the norm and not the exception.
Let’s go back to what Carlson said were the four keys to their success:
1. Talent – A happy employee who does not have the skills and knowledge to do the job will not lead to consistent success. What he doesn’t say is that, for the most part, skills and knowledge can be acquired.
2. Unity – This is all about teamwork, all about people working together as a unit.
3. Speed – When one hears a person in motorsport talk about speed, you can’t help but think he’s talking about the car. But in this case, Carlson is talking about people. Having spent years around high-performing race teams (and some low-performing ones), I know that he’s talking about how having the right systems and processes in place, good people will perform quickly and efficiently.
4. Focus – Happy, talented employees, working together within great systems will not perform well if they’re headed in the wrong direction. Well, duh. Focus is critical.
But here’s the point: Talented employees, working together as a team with great systems, and focused in the right direction will not perform consistently well if they’re unhappy. I can think of one specific race team that I was involved with where this was the case. They had incredibly talented people. They worked well together, as a team. They had fantastic, well-designed systems and processes in place. And they were very focused on what was important and what needed to be done. But it was not a “happy workplace.” And they under-performed.
Lesson learned.
Success Lessons From The World Of NASCAR
A recent edition of USA Today (November 6, 2009) ran an article about the consistent success of Hendrick Motorsports’ NASCAR teams. Some would say domination is a better word than consistent success, given that they are closing in on their fourth consecutive NASCAR championship (perhaps taking 1st, 2nd and 3rd). The article is titled, “Happy in the Workplace – Hendricks Motorsports’ people skills key success,” and it provides some lessons that any organization, whether in sport or the business world, can learn from.
General Manager, Marshall Carlson says there are four keys to their success: “Talent, unity, speed, and focus, and all four are about people, not technology or widgets.” Where some teams look to cut costs on hotels and food for their traveling teams (consider that these teams are on the road for at least 36 weekends per year), Hendrick Motorsport “views booking quality hotels and catering healthy meals as essential as top-notch equipment.” In other words, looking after their people.
While most race team managers come from within the sport, Carlson came from Hendrick’s auto dealership empire. He views the running of the race teams no different from running of a car dealership. “They’re a lot less different than you’d think, because the culture is very much aligned.”
“A lot of car dealers put the customer first. At Hendrick Automotive Group, the employee is No. 1 and they’ll take care of the customers because happy customers keep the manufacturers happy. It’s same with the team. We feel if we have smart and talented people happy to be there, we’ll run well. If we run well, the sponsors will be happy. Even in a sport where the technology is very important, the difference is the human capital.”
“Anything that touches people takes precedent, whether it’s food, travel, uniforms, working conditions or health insurance,” he said. “That’s contrary to how some organizations work.”
Hmmm… Happy employees. Ensuring employees are happy is the number one priority, assuming that if they are, they will make sure the customer is happy.
How many companies claim that people are their number one resource, and yet don’t back that up with their actions. In fact, having facilitated strategic planning sessions for companies, I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve heard senior management make that claim, and yet heard from employees that it’s not true. Leaders claiming that employees are most important, and yet acting as though they are really a distant second – or third, fourth, or worse – to anything that leads to short-term financial results seems to be the norm and not the exception.
Let’s go back to what Carlson said were the four keys to their success:
1. Talent – A happy employee who does not have the skills and knowledge to do the job will not lead to consistent success. What he doesn’t say is that, for the most part, skills and knowledge can be acquired.
2. Unity – This is all about teamwork, all about people working together as a unit.
3. Speed – When one hears a person in motorsport talk about speed, you can’t help but think he’s talking about the car. But in this case, Carlson is talking about people. Having spent years around high-performing race teams (and some low-performing ones), I know that he’s talking about how having the right systems and processes in place, good people will perform quickly and efficiently.
4. Focus – Happy, talented employees, working together within great systems will not perform well if they’re headed in the wrong direction. Well, duh. Focus is critical.
But here’s the point: Talented employees, working together as a team with great systems, and focused in the right direction will not perform consistently well if they’re unhappy. I can think of one specific race team that I was involved with where this was the case. They had incredibly talented people. They worked well together, as a team. They had fantastic, well-designed systems and processes in place. And they were very focused on what was important and what needed to be done. But it was not a “happy workplace.” And they under-performed.
Lesson learned.
Friday, February 4, 2011
The 2012 Honda Civic Concept!
The Honda Civic Si Concept coupe and the Civic Concept sedan made their world debuts at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan. The Concept vehicles offered an intriguing preview of the styling direction of the new, ninth-generation Civic.
This spring, the all-new Civic model range will arrive with unprecedented diversity, including conventional sedan and coupe models, sporty "Si" performance versions, as well as hybrid and natural-gas variants. The new Civic hybrid will feature a lithium ion battery cell, the first ever for a Honda hybrid. In another first for Honda, the Eco-Assist™[1] system will be available in most upcoming Civic models. Additionally, Honda is expanding retail sales of the natural gas-powered Civic GX model.
Altogether, the new Civic promises to continue its tradition of user-friendliness, sporty performance and excellent fuel economy, offering an unprecedented level of variety with the widest array of powertrain choices in its class.
[1] Eco Assist is a trademark of Honda Motor Co., Ltd., and may not be used or reproduced without prior written approval.
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