mlittle wrote:mlittle wrote:Mod's note...........I will try to find more info on this story as it will make a big effect on where the silly season chips fall.........
This evening's edition of
The Speed Report on Speed Channel had a bombshell announcement as Andretti Autosport will no longer be a four-car team for 2011. According to Speed's Robin Miller, convenience store conglomerate 7-11 will no longer sponsor an IndyCar ride after 2010. As a result, the team has released 2004 series champion Tony Kanaan, who is now a free agent and whose presence will have an impact on silly season.
It is now safe to assume that the off-season rat race known as silly season has begun..........
Andretti Autosport Confirms 7-11 Withdrawal
Quoting the article.............
7-Eleven, Inc. has notified Andretti Autosport that it will not continue in its role as the primary sponsor of the team's #11 IZOD IndyCar Series entry beyond 2010.
7-Eleven will maintain its position as an associate sponsor on the team's #7 IZOD IndyCar Series entry for 2011. Andretti Autosport is currently working to secure primary sponsorship for the #11 car, which has been driven by Tony Kanaan since 2003.
Andretti Autosport's John Lopes says the team hopes to find a replacement as Kanaan's primary sponsor to keep the 2004 series champion in the No. 11 car next year. "We are confirming today that 7-Eleven will not be returning as the primary sponsor of the 11 car next season. We are thankful for their many years of support and are proud of all we accomplished together. 7-Eleven will continue to be an associate sponsor of our team through an ongoing contract in support of Danica Patrick's GoDaddy.com car."
(Lopes added) "Our hope is to have Tony Kanaan and the 11 car as part of our IZOD IndyCar Series lineup again in 2011 and we are currently working very hard to find the necessary sponsorship to make that a reality. In the meantime and although he remains under contract with Andretti Autosport, we have given Tony and his management the permission to talk with other IndyCar team owners to explore what other alternatives might be available at this time."
Speed Channel: Kanaan, Andretti Part Company
One of the longest, most successful partnerships in IndyCar racing is over, at least for now, as Tony Kanaan and Andretti Autosport have parted company.
The popular 2004 champion couldn’t be guaranteed a ride after longtime sponsor 7-Eleven bailed a few weeks ago so he took a buyout and now he’s a free agent. “I don’t agree with some things and it’s very disappointing but I have no hard feelings,” said Kanaan, who joined a team then known as Andretti-Green in 2003 and proceeded to win 14 races and lead more than 2,600 laps. It’s sad because I wanted to be there. It’s been my home for nine years and I have a lot of great memories but it’s life, it’s reality, and now I’ve got to find a new home.”
Michael Andretti, who took over sole ownership of the team in 2009, issued the following statement: “It’s difficult to believe that Andretti Autosport and Tony Kanaan will no longer be competing together, but that is now the reality with the signing of this agreement. When 7-Eleven notified us that they would not be returning as primary sponsor, we were left with a very challenging situation. Given the timing of that notification, we felt it was important to give Tony the freedom to review his options outside of Andretti Autosport. We understand his value as a driver in this series and we did not want to prevent him from furthering his career in the event we could not arrive at a reasonable solution for 2011.
“So today we agreed the best option for both Tony and our race team is to allow him the freedom to sign with another team. Personally, I want to thank him for all the effort and passion he shared with our team and I am proud of what we accomplished. He brought us our first pole, our first race win and our first championship. We wish Tony many wins in the future.”
John Lopes, chief marketing officer and senior vice president of Andretti Autosport, said every attempt was made to keep this combo intact. “We heard rumblings last summer that 7-Eleven was having business issues that would ultimately impact the sponsorship so we started working to restructure our deal with them,” said Lopes, who revealed that 7-Eleven will remain on Danica Patrick’s car as an associate sponsor. “We were shocked when they told us a few days before Homestead they were getting out but we felt we did everything we could to save the deal. And we also tried to help TK find a ride.”
The 35-year-old Brazilian who resides in Miami turned down an offer to drive for Chip Ganassi in the summer of 2008 to stay at AGR. “I’m still convinced it was the best choice for me and it wasn’t about money,” said Kanaan, whose bad luck at Indianapolis rivals Lloyd Ruby and Michael Andretti. “We had won three championships and two Indy 500s and it was the Big 3 with Penske, Ganassi and AGR. It’s easy now to say I was stupid but I was loyal to my team and that’s just the way I am.”
Justin Wilson and Kanaan are the top free agents in the IndyCar paddock and there are some decent seats available at KV Racing, Luczo/de Ferran and Newman/Haas. “I know some people might think they can’t afford me but I’m not looking for money right now, I’m looking for a competitive team where I can go and win races,” said Kanaan, who was scheduled to make $3 million in 2011, 2012 and 2013 with Andretti.
“You know it sounds crazy but if I get a good sponsor and bringing it back to Michael is my best option, that’s what I’ll do.”
Andretti received a double whammy when IndyCar title sponsor IZOD informed the team it would not sponsor Ryan Hunter-Reay in 2011, nor would ICM or Green Plains. And Meijer is also gone from the Indy-based team. “It’s difficult, for sure, but not as bad as 2007, even after winning the Indy500, when we lost Canadian Club, Jim Beam, Argent, Vonage and XM Satellite Radio in a single week – that was over $13 million,” said Lopes, who has GoDaddy returning with Patrick and Venom Energy Drink with Marco Andretti. I’m confident we’ll be a four-car team next year because I’m confident we will sell our way out of this. We’ve got 49 loyal sponsors associated with this team and that group, along with IZOD, helped keep Ryan on track in 2010. But we got blindsided by this deal and it’s a tough situation for TK and for us because he’s like family.”
Kanaan tried to put a positive spin on his situation. “I’m good on starts and restarts,” he said with a laugh. “Well, this is a restart, I just don’t know if I’m going low or high yet.”