Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

I see he wins again tonight in Eldora. what are the chances this kid takes his talents on the WoO trail?

We'll be very lucky if we keep this kid in sprint cars at all.   

You are right..  I have been told that quite a few nascar owners have been

watching him very close..   And we all know the big shots of nascar are always

looking at marketing.. Danica, a lady and now because of Rico size and ability there

probably talking among themselves what can this little man do for our market. 

I would hate to see him go because he is a hell'va open wheel driver, very good

and will only get better in time.

I've been wondering why he hasn't been racing with the WOO already. He's been choosing to race against much less competition for much less money after towing all the way across country; doesn't make a lot of sense if the intent is to move up with the big boys. Better competition and more money to be made right at home than what he's been doing lately isn't there? OK blast away.

A

You mean what the ex-Outlaw guys do when they go back to Pa., (cherry picking after the Outlaw tour) and win lots (Hodnet, Pittman, Smith)....

A lot of the time, his sprint car schedule is dictated as to what is close to his midget ride. 
If he can run a combo midget and sprint show, why not?

Who really cares where he is racing?  He is getting laps and getting better and better.  He has proven he can win against any competition in a midget, winged sprint, and even a non-winged sprint( his first time driving one at Calistoga). 

I appreciate the guys who are true outlaws and race all over the country.  And, he is probably making just as much money running his own schedule, anyway.  And, he's definitely getting in a lot more races this way as opposed to being just purely a WoO driver. 
Winning $2000 to $4000 shows means he would have to be in the top three or so of most Outlaw races to make the same money.  So, why not continue to do what he's doing? 

bufurd hit the nail on the head.  Rico's first priority is his midget ride with Kunz.  He fills in his schedule with the sprinter.  And you are 110% correct about running for $2k, $3k and $5k races.  Winning one of these shows, and lets face it, he wins a lot of these shows over the last 2 years, pay better than the top 5 in WoO.  Running top 5 in WoO is difficult for anyone.  All that said, I don't think this kid is doing it for hte money though.  He races where he wants, when he wants.  Money doesn't seem to be an issue for him or his family.  This kid is running an outlaw type schedule and getting a lot of attention in the process. 

Hmmm....reminds me of another Northern California kid recently. 
 

Prolly depends on what Paul Silva wants to do.

Rico's schedule is actually a product of Larson's parents. They setup a similar schedule to what Kyle ran so they get the most races in within a resonable drive of one another.

Cheers!

I would say Rico is a true outlaw.  He races when and where he wishes which is what alot of us say is a good thing.  The WOO is not outlaw racing.  They have a rule book that says you can not race any other place without huge penalitys.  I do not think the WOO is the greatest way to race now days.  I think Tony Stewart and Larson are probably at work right now trying to get Rico some trial rides in NASCAR .

I would love to see someone stick it to the WoO and run most of the schedule but not as a platinum member so they could run wherever they felt on off nights.  Not really financially viable, but would be awesome to see someone like what Wolfgang used to do and win 20+ races on the tour without caring about the tour

yep running most of someone's schedule and letting them use you to draw fans and publicity without getting paid any points money or tow money would really be sticking it to them.

to indy and beyond!!

It would be if you didn't run the entire tour but won half the time that you showed up.  If you bailed for local shows, for stuff like Trophy Cup, Dirt Classic, hit the 35 shows for BGTS new series, or decided to run a Speedweek instead of travelling to all WoO shows it sure wouldn't make WRG happy to have a part time runner constantly beating the "Greatest Show on Dirt."  If WRG didn't care they wouldn't be so punitive to guys who don't apply for Platinum status (tow money, point fund money...etc.)  However, financially those platinum perks do make a difference especially  so I don't see anyone truly doing it ever again.  Kaeding came close a couple of years ago and won 8 races, but only hit about 30-35 outlaw shows.

It is a fantasy pipe dream, I realize that.....it would just be cool to see.  Wolfgang is still the benchmark for this....I think one year he won 25-26 outlaw races and finished about 8th in points because he missed about 20-25 shows to run in PA.

First of all, who other than Schatz can win 20+ races on the tour?

To race 80% of the WoO races is one of the dumbest financial decisions you can make because you're missing out on $80-100k in tow and point fund money if you're in the top 10 in points (or would be if you followed the whole schedule). You'd be hard pressed to make that up in winnings elsewhere.

As for Rico, I think he'll go on the tour if the Nascar/IndyCar potential dries up. But he's sticking to midgets because they get alot of attention based on the pedigree of some of NASCAR's best.

Hence, the "I know its a fantasy pipe dream" and "its not financially viable."  Doesn't mean it wouldn't be fun to see.  That is the point....if it wasn't something WoO were worried about someone doing, they wouldn't make it so difficult to do, obviously Schatz is the benchmark right now and no one else is close.....  It was pie in the sky spitballing of something it would be cool to see someone do...ie run a true outlaw schedule and possibly still be considered the best winged sprint car team in the country.

I hope Rico does what he loves and not what he is supposed to do. Not sure what it is (his decision) but I really appreciate it when guys stick around sprintcars because the dullness of pavement isnt worth the money. Tony knows sprintcars are more fun but chooses to follow the money. For how long is it worth it? Once you built up so much what is ur next million really worth? You only live once. Maybe guys like Rico Tony Larson etc will all race the tour someday but probably not. We can only hope.