"Rexall" has been removed from the title Rexall Edmonton Indy.
Does it have anything to do with the arena battle between Edmonton Oilers owner Daryl Katz and race organizer Edmonton Northlands?
Did the battle, which fired up this week with Northlands announcing it's seeking a "made in Edmonton solution" and reports of a plan to build a new arena where the Northlands Park race track has long existed, cause the loss of the title sponsor of the event?
Is this an indication of an unprecedented financial disaster in the making for the IndyCar race that lost $5.3 million and $3.9 million of taxpayers' money in the last two years?
Rexall has been eliminated from the title on the Northlands Indy race website, as has the six-figure sponsorship support of Konica-Minolta.
"Rexall's sponsorship of the Edmonton Indy has expired and we have been approached to renew it," Rexall spokesman Michael Bobroff said yesterday.
NOT FINALIZED
"The marketing/sponsorship budget for Rexall hasn't been finalized yet and we are currently evaluating another year of Indy sponsorship within our overall objectives and the return on investment this particular sponsorship brings.
"The renewal request remains under consideration."
Of the double whammy of the arena announcement and the change of the race name from Rexall Edmonton Indy to simply Edmonton Indy, a source close to the parties involved said: "If they hadn't lost Rexall before this week, I certainly can't see any chance of getting them back now."
While the original Rexall title sponsor deal was believed to be $400,000 or less, it was hoped a new deal would be in the $600,000 range.
Katz, under the Edmonton Oilers and Rexall banners, sponsored Graham Rahal's car for a reported $500,000 donation to team co-owner Paul Newman's Hole in the Wall camps for kids.
With excellent attendance and rave reviews of the entire Edmonton race scene over the last five years, despite the last two years of abominable disorganization by Northlands, a serious lack of sponsorship has been the biggest failing of the event which provides huge benefits to the local economy.
To lose Rexall and Konica-Minolta would be major blows -- not just in terms of income lost, but perception.
While neither Brian Leadbetter nor Mike Burton or Northlands returned calls requesting information on the status of Rexall race sponsorship or an explanation of the move on the website, the timing is hardly helpful.
Mayor Stephen Mandel is in the process of forming a mayor's committee of movers and shakers to promote the race, which is in the final year of a three-year contract with the Indy Racing League.
Taking the promotion and some of the organization out of the hands of the doubly whammy of the arena announcement and the change of the race name from Rexall Edmonton Indy to simply Edmonton Indy Northlands and having community leaders become hands-on makes nothing but sense if Edmonton can see a future for the event, which has unquestionably added sizzle to the summer festival scene in the city.
But with no contract negotiations for the future underway as a result of the uncertainty of being able to use the downtown airport venue, support is going to be hard to find.
NO REASON
How do you convince sponsors to back an event which they have no reason to believe will be back?
A source indicated that not only is there an apparent dramatic loss of sponsorship, but corporate concerns about renewing suite-style boxes for the event.
If Mayor Mandel is going to save this thing, the first need is to secure a future for the race at either the airport location or on the streets of Edmonton.
If sponsors and, this time around, even the ticket-buying public are going to buy in, it has to be for a future -- not to wave goodbye to Indy car racing like Vancouver did six years ago to open the door for Edmonton.
And as for Rexall vs Northlands, it's beginning to look like the fair board has been rejected by Katz as a viable partner, which to me means he's decided to concentrate on financing the downtown arena site with financing from casino, hotel, retail and the AEG entertainment corporation.
That would be good news for taxpayers, but bad news for Northlands.
And apparently very bad news indeed for the Edmonton Indy.
TERRY.JONES@SUNMEDIA.CA
