Don Panoz does not own kid gloves

[KC]

I poached this interview-article from the RACER site and in it Don Panoz is interviewed about Panoz Motorsports, the American, European and Asian LeMans Series, and factory teams vesus privateers. His outlooks are definitely interesting and a touch antagonistic to say the least.
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Anytime you talk with Don Panoz, you get more than you bargained for. We spoke with him Thursday about his hiring Scott Atherton to manage his far-flung motorsports interests. He then launched into a variety of subjects that together comprised a sort of "state of the company" address.

On taking his show to Europe: "We have the rights to conduct a European Le Mans Series, the American series and an Asian-Pacific series. The results and the enthusiasm and the chance to show the show that we bring to Silverstone and Nurburgring has opened everybody's eyes, because they haven't seen sports car racing like this in Europe – outside Le Mans – in 15 years.

"The show that we bring, the standard of racing, the closeness racing, the lack of cautions that we have has captured everybody's attention. We run the races well. We're not political. There're no favorites with crazy things going on like Ferrari dust on the track or **** like that. It doesn't happen with us.

"The fans are beginning to appreciate our show. We had 25,000 fans at Nurburgring, and it poured rain all day long. It was 45 to 50 degrees, and we still had a helluva turnout.

"On top of that, the DTM scheduled its race exactly opposite us. The DTM – organized by Mercedes, who made an ass of themselves at Le Mans last year – they even scheduled a DTM race opposite Le Mans this year. We offered to change our race to the third of July, and they insisted that we run as scheduled.

"But we had a good show, and I think they'll think again before scheduling opposite us. We'll put on a better show. Certainly, our type of racing is a helluva lot more entertaining that what DTM is doing right now. They're all running the same speed and there's not a lot of difference between that and NASCAR at Sears Point."

On to racing engines: "You also want to remember that we went to Le Mans with our own engine program, which everybody thought we were crazy to take away from (NASCAR Ford-engine guru Robert) Yates. All five cars finished. Also, it was the third year in a row that multiple entries from our stable have finished. The nine cars for Le Mans that have been there from Panoz all have finished.

"The other thing is with our engine program, we won the race at Nurburgring. The two races before that – Charlotte and Silverstone – we were second and probably should have won those. So our engine program and where we've taken our technology level has gone even a step further than where we were."

On coming up with a 4min transmission change for Le Mans in 2001: "We have a whole new car next year, and we have a new engine next year. There were a couple of things that were very unusual about the Le Mans race this year. First of all, the fact that we finished all five cars and had finished the cars the two previous years is a record. On top of that, there hasn't been a front-engined car lead Le Mans overall for 26 years.

"There's no question that Audi was a really well-engineered, well-oiled team and car. But they didn't have any bad luck at Le Mans. It caught up with them at Nurburgring.

"We had bad luck at Le Mans. There were a tremendous number of punctures this year. When you get in the gravel trap at over 150mph, it's hard not to break something. We broke a crankcase and that led to an oil filter breaking and it was just a series of things that came from all that.

"I'll tell you what, for Mario (Andretti) to keep that car from hitting that barrier at Indianapolis (corner) at 200mph when he had that blow-out was a spectacular piece of driving. Got the car back in one piece.

"The Danish car had a big shunt, and it took them six hours to rebuild that car. But all of them got back in there, and all of them finished.

On supplying customer cars: "This was the first year that Panoz had supplied privateers. We all know that in the history of racing – at least in my recent history and looking what others are doing – the factory keeps the good cars and they give last year's to the privateers. BMW did that. Audi has last year's cars that they race at certain places.

"A Panoz privateer gets everything the factory team does, and the proof is in the pudding – the Japanese were sixth and eighth, while we were fifth, 15th and 31st. Our motto is that we give them the same pieces that we have.

"So that's another new standard that we're trying to set in racing. I really get upset when we're trying to race and put on a good show for the fans that the manufacturers have an arrogant attitude about what they supply privateers. They've got to remember that without privateers they don't get a place to race.

"For my money, it's bigger glory that a privateer would win a race than the factory team. If you want to make this into a business – which is what it should be and not just gentlemen drivers showing up to look good in their drivers' suits – you have to have a professional presentation, giving the fans a good show. We give fair value. We treat our customers right and everybody has a chance to win.

"That's it, and I'm sticking to it."

[Heeltoe6]

Thought his insights on last year's Le Mans effort by Mercedes was pretty good

[Liz]

I like Don Panoz. He is a man who clearly is in it for the racing (although of course he has a hard head about money as he must have) - and so far he has not forgotten that a race which nobody watches is simply an exercise in selfishness.

Forza Panoz, and keep talking - other formulae may listen and learn from you how to stage a race.

[fatbloke]

I love this guy! He's says (and, more importantly, he means) all the right things. His comments about privateers are spot on.

Having been fortunate enough to have been at the Silverstone round of the ALMS earlier this year, I can honestly say that (alongside this year's Goodwood Festival) it was the best weekend i've ever had trackside. It was probably made even better as it only cost £10 to get in, as opposed to £160 for the GP debacle a week or two earlier.

If only Bernie was like Don...