Thinking Bigger

First, it was Juan Pablo Montoya at the Brickyard…then, Marcos Ambrose at Infineon…two foreign-born drivers on the verge of winning races…penalized by NASCAR…one for going too fast…the other too slow.

Those two penalties led to a chorus of conspiracy theorists claiming that they’re just further examples of how NASCAR doesn’t want foreign drivers winning races.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

There is a lot of opportunity for growth out there…especially overseas.  And, growth means more interest and more money. 

Recently, I spent a week and a half in Europe…and my trip underscored how much room for growth remains.  I have been blessed to get to travel to a lot of different places and this is the first trip I can remember taking in the last 20 years during which I didn’t see a single stitch of NASCAR-related clothing.  Not one.

And, when I would tell the natives that I did work in NASCAR, I got blank stares in return. 

Oh, they watch racing…I saw touring cars and motorcycles racing on TV.  But, Europe doesn’t know anything about NASCAR.

Believe me, the folks in Daytona see Europe as a huge untapped market…and know that nothing will get their attention faster than a non-American driver winning races.

Did the World Cup get any of your attention while the United States was in it?  How much did that change once they were out?

We all tend to be provincial…those with a world view know that’s what they need to tap into