Ford Cost Cuts Hit Aussie Racing Legend
(NOTE: For NASCAR fans picture Ford cutting loose the Woods Bros. on the eve of a big race to understand the significance of this move.)
After more than 30 years as a Blue-Oval battler Dick Johnson, often fighting single-handed against a horde of Holdens (GM), has been tossed to the curb by Ford in a dash for cash.
Craig Lowndes will also be caught in the crossfire from a decision by Ford to centralize its cash commitment with just two V8 Supercar teams, Ford Performance Racing (FPR) and Stone Brothers Racing (SBR).
Lowndes’s team Triple Eight was dumped by management at Broadmeadows in a money move that also affects former Bathurst winner Jason Bright’s team.
The decision is likely to save Ford about $3 million, a significant sum as it battles falling sales of its flagship Falcon.
“This is a weird one,” a stunned Johnson said when told of the Ford decision. “I’m 63 but right now I feel more like 190. It’s already been a tough year.”
Roland Dane, the head of Triple Eight, defended the team’s record.
“Ford have clearly got some issues they have to deal with,” Dane said. “I wish all the employees at Ford all the best, because the company has obviously got a few challenges at the moment.”
The Ford cutback comes as the company looks for more bang from its V8 Supercar buck, although it says motorsport is still its single biggest sporting spend.
Full details of Ford’s future will not be revealed for some time, with FPR believed to be working on a three-car program for next year with James Courtney moving from Stone Brothers to take the extra wheel. But FPR and SBR will form a technical liaison.
The impact is likely to be extensive and could even shake the foundations of V8 Supercar racing, because Holden has also scaled back its involvement in recent years and new company chief Mark Reuss has recently said he would be happy to see another carmaker in the contest.
Johnson joked that he might even end up driving a Toyota, although his lifetime commitment to Ford is unlikely to change.
“We’ll see where it goes from here,” he said. “I need a bit of time to think about things. I see no reason to stop being a Ford person.”
Johnson began his racing career in Holdens, but had his first start in a Falcon in 1975. Since then he has raced American Mustangs and British Sierras, and even a production-class Laser, before returning to Falcons in the V8 Supercar era. He also rallies in an Escort.
His ties to the company date from 1980, after he hit a rock while leading at Bathurst and Edsel Ford - then the marketing chief at Ford Australia - offered a dollar-for-dollar deal to match donations from his fans.
“It went from there. I guess the biggest win for me was getting the first championship in 1981,” Johnson said.
“And Bathurst in the Sierra days was pretty good, before the Bathurst wins in the early 1990s.”
Johnson’s team has been hit hard by money troubles in recent years, with the laconic Queenslander losing more than $2 million of his personal fortune in keeping the operation running. He is now facing a bankruptcy proceeding.
Technorati Tags: V8 Supercars, Dick Johnson, Jim Beam Racing, Graig Lowndes, Ford Performance Racing, Stone Brothers Racing
Well I wont be popular..BUT. If CAMS had accepted the 6 cylinder proposal, a few years back, the series would have had Toyota &, almost certainly, Mitsubishi.
As for Lowndes, after the big defection from Holden…..what has he really achieved? Same goes for Triple 8, a constant almost achiever in the Ford stable.
Ford has had to bite the economic bullet & the first team thrown under the bus was old Dick’s. To be fair, the team has been struggling & Dick has his own financial problems.As a team owner (sorry) Dick’s best days are behind him.
It’s a harsh economic reality, but Ford has centralised it’s efforts with the right teams.
I don’t disagree in the slightest Peter. If Ford had to make a cut Johnson with all his other troubles was the obvious choice.