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It's more like Ducati is under the Audi umbrella with Volkswagen.
Audi is a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group
branding is a major part of this and the two vibes are very incompatible. it just doesn’t look right.
Ahhh...I though Audi had controlling interest and made the decisions. My bad. Probably takes JGR out of the mix. I had been told Phoenix and HEP are the likely destinations for Ducati.
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I'm not quite sure your angle here...If you're implying he is breaking news or industry hearsay for exposure, then you're right. That's exactly his job as a journalist and media persona.
Now this is refreshing 🙂
Ken and Ducati (lots of money) go together like PB & J
DC did a pod not long ago with Matthes about his trip to Italy for the Ducati intro and he eluded that they were interested in joining a program that is already based on the East coast... I read that as Phoenix or possibly JGR.
What does he do nodays at JGR?
HEP is out on Ducati. They just re-signed a deal with Suzuki.
Maybe Club also I hope
Ducati, Club, and Kenny would be my dream team
*Cough* Ducati visiting Phoenix soon... *cough*
Yes, and that deal expires in 2025.
Ducati is expected to join in 2026.
A side from that, they're based on the West coast and they want to partner with someone located in the East.
Lots of discussion for over 2 years away. Obviously it won’t be that for the MXGP.
Currently looking for CNC business, JGR has a growing machine shop. They are landing a good bit of Aerospace work.
Lots of R & D time
I realize that Jeremy still works there. So, the question then becomes does he want to step back from his current position (new business development) and run a race team. Like has been mentioned, when Coy passed I believe the passion for MX within the Gibbs family also passed.
Think east coast teams...
JGR?
ClubMX?
Phoenix Racing?
What about a revived Factory Connection team?
Pit Row
Man this would be awesome and I truly hope this ends up coming to fruition
Revived FC and Phoenix are the same thing. Ziggy from Factory Connection is very involved with Phoenix now and slowly partnering more and more.
I would bet my eggs on either Pheonix or JGR. Slight edge to Pheonix as they are currently racing. Both teams have a legit HQ which Ducati would require
Educate me, why not Club
JGR and Phoenix both have backing businesses that under the right circumstances can match investments made by Ducati, Club is very sponsorship-dependent still.
JGR has manufacturing and development arms that could be of interest to Ducati, but needs to restart the infrastructure of the team.
Phoenix has a competitive GNCC operation and staff for that side of racing, which I've heard is of major interest to Ducati as well. I believe Ducati has interest in Ziggy (Factory Connection) as well, who is now partnered up in a sense with Phoenix.
Well that explains it and thank you. Great job hiring Dark and Lewis 🙂
One thing to point out with the early Ken Roczen rumors is how the energy drink deal would be handled? Ducati is partnered with Monster, Lenovo, Flexbox, and a few other key brands across all their factory racing entries. From what I've heard that would be extended into their US team as well. Roczen has been with Red Bull since he was...what...12?
These contracts sure can get complicated amongst the big guns
I don't remember any bad mouthing by the JGR staff on lack of Suzuki support during the term of the partnership. Actually recall quite the opposite. JGR didn't go away for lack of interest and desire.
More teams, manufactures and non endemic sponsors in the sport is a win for everyone involved.
JGR makes the most sense to me for a lot of reasons:
-JGR retained a LOT of the mx staff and just put them in various departments. Dean Baker, the horsepower maker? Yep, he’s there still working on nascar engine projects now, and he’ll build you a rocket ship if you send him your motor through his personal business, Baker Speed. I’ve heard J Bone is doing some various business development stuff. The guy who did the mx graphics is working on cup cars, I want to say he mentioned doing carbon fiber work? I could be wrong. Point is, they’re either there, or JGR gave them the equipment to keep doing what they were doing to open their own shops (art of war).
-JGR is a conglomerate, not just a race team. As previously mentioned their machine shop is building things for all sorts of high end industries. The manufacturing capabilities and technical ability would be invaluable to a manufacturer launching a new bike. Suzuki is VERY cautious with regards to their reliability, and JGR was able to create race spec heads that met their criteria to sell as a Suzuki accessory with data to prove its longevity. I just don’t see the other teams mentioned able to offer anything near this. The others might build a motor, but they’re using the “f around and find out” method to determine a lot of service limits by comparison to JGR. (Look at Phil’s transmission rant if you need backup)
-Thirdly, I think JGR would be able to raise far more sponsor funds for a program of this nature, and open doors for potential supplier and logistic deals (there was once a story of them picking up a sponsor because they got that corporation a deal on freight with their sponsor, FedEx). Things like that, that reach far beyond and above what smaller teams can provide.
I figured if you knew Albrecht still worked at JGR it would've been worth mentioning when you said it will have to be managed by someone besides a Gibbs. Seems odd to leave that part out in your original comment. He's obviously capable and experienced enough to do it.
I thought Factory HRC was going to start phasing out the 250 class and Phoenix was supposed to be the factory honda team, I suppose that isn't likely anymore?
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