Edited by Len Ashburn
Downforce Racing Selected as New Baltimore Promoters
Indianapolis, IN, February 15, 2012 - A partnership comprised of two Baltimore-based business entrepreneurs and an Indianapolis-based construction executive with extensive motor racing experience has been selected by Mayor Stephanie-Rawlings Blake to produce the Baltimore Grand Prix starting this Labor Day and continuing through 2016. The Mayor's selection is subject to review by the Baltimore City Board of Estimates.
Downforce Racing consists of Wilkes Lane Racing LLC, whose principals are Felix J. Dawson and Daniel C. Reck, and Dillon Racing LLC, whose principal is Dale Dillon.
Dawson and Reck are founding partners of Wilkes Lane Capital, LLC, which focuses on advisory services and private investing in the energy sector. Both are former executives of Constellation Energy. Dawson served as president and chief executive officer of Constellation Energy Commodities Group, Inc., and Reck was co-head of Origination in the same group.
Dale Dillon owns Dillon Construction Group and Dillon Racing, both based in Indianapolis. He has served as head of operations for Grand Prix races in St. Petersburg and Toronto, and was brought in to manage the operations of the 2011 Baltimore Grand Prix just weeks before the race.
The partners impressed the Mayor with their experienced executive leadership, significant credentials in race operations, and strong financial management capabilities. The goal, the partners emphasize, is to create an event that grows over time to become the premiere street racing event in North America. The 2011 Baltimore Grand Prix, they note, was a successful event for spectators and the local hospitality industry, and persuaded the IndyCar and American Le Mans organizations of Baltimore's potential as a race setting. There is sufficient spectator, business, and civic support for the race to be a profitable event for all parties involved. The race organizers expect last year's $47-million economic impact to increase as the event becomes a staple of the City's Labor Day activities.
Among the race organizers' challenges are landing title sponsors for the event and attracting vendors, many of whom went unpaid after last year's race. Both challenges are already being addressed, they emphasize. The task of lining up title sponsors is expected to be finalized quickly, and a disciplined business plan is expected to ease vendors' doubts.
2012 IZOD IndyCar Series Broadcast Schedule Confirmed
Indianapolis, IN, February 13, 2012 - The IZOD IndyCar Series confirmed today its broadcast designations for its 16-race 2012 schedule, highlighted by six races on ABC and 10 events on the newly rebranded NBC Sports Network.
ABC will carry live coverage of IZOD IndyCar Series races at St. Petersburg, Indianapolis, Belle Isle, Milwaukee, Toronto and Mid-Ohio. The 2012 season will mark the 48th consecutive year that ABC has aired the Indianapolis 500, extending one of the longest relationships between a sporting event and a television network.
ABC's coverage of the Indianapolis 500 and the five other IZOD IndyCar Series races will be expanded to include live streaming of ABC's onboard cameras on ESPN3, ESPN's signature broadband sports network.
NBC Sports Network, the IZOD IndyCar Series' exclusive cable network, will air live events at Barber Motorsports Park, Long Beach, Sao Paulo, Texas, Edmonton, Qingdao, Infineon, Baltimore and the season finale at Auto Club Speedway.
Additionally, NBC Sports Network will launch a featured program called INDYCAR 36, which will document 36 hours in the life of an IZOD IndyCar Series driver, taking viewers behind the scenes during select event weekends from the first practice through the checkered flag.
Formerly known as VERSUS, the NBC Sports Network serves as a 24/7 cable platform for NBC Sports' rich heritage of unmatched storytelling, best-in-class production and broad promotional power.
