zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Racing
/
Rich Energy Did It Again
Rich Energy Did It Again-October 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:10:49

Kyle Ride of Rich energy OMG Racing at Brands Hatch in 2021.

, the energy-drink sponsor that gained notoriety during its tenure as the title sponsor of the in 2019, is at it again. Earlier this week, the Rich Energy HQ Twitter account announced that it would no longer be sponsoring , a British Superbikes team that is currently leading its championship. There’s just one problem: OMG Racing doesn’t actually agree with that statement.

“Rich Energy would like to thank OMG Racing for their work in the last 2 years but the whole agreement is now at an end,” the Twitter post read. “Rich Energy is expanding its portfolio in many spheres including sport.”

If you click that link to Rich Energy’s website, you’re taken to a site under construction. To buy any product, .

According to , OMG Racing team principal Paul Curran “said he was considering blocking reporters’ phone numbers” after a long morning of calls from journalists seeking clarification on the situation.

Earlier today, OMG Racing released a on the matter that read, in part:

Rich Energy OMG Racing is not, and has never been, sponsored by William Storey.

Rich Energy OMG Racing is not, and has never been, sponsored by the Rich Energy brand owners. Rich Energy OMG Racing is sponsored by RichOMG Limited, the global sales and distribution rights holder for the drinks, Rich Energy (classic) and Rich Energy Sugar-Free.

This sponsorship agreement was established in March 2020 ahead of the 2020 BSB season and remains firmly in place at this time. The sponsorship also extended to support the team when contesting the Northwest 200 and the Isle of Man TT Races in 2022.

So, Rich Energy OMG Racing apparently isn’t sponsored by Rich Energy, it’s sponsored by RichOMG Limited. Two totally different companies. Which is fine — except, we’ve been through this weird fracturing before.

If you need a refresher on the Haas drama, here it is in a nutshell: Rich Energy signed as Haas’ title partner for the 2019 F1 season. Halfway through that season, Rich Energy that it was no longer sponsoring Haas. Except, some parts of Rich Energy’s corporate organization disagreed. Haas itself disagreed. Then, Rich Energy split; one party kept the Rich Energy name while the other became . At the end of the day, though, Haas ended up without a title sponsor in what was one of the more embarrassing fiascos of modern F1 history.

That poor track record hasn’t exactly stopped other race teams, drivers, or series from turning to Rich Energy as a prospective sponsor. Since the falling-out with Haas, Rich Energy has secured deals with OMG Racing in British Superbikes and Rich Energy BTC Racing in the British Touring Car Championship. The former is currently falling apart; let’s see what happens with the latter.

Perhaps most fascinating, though, is that Rich Energy has dropped OMG during a season of solid performance (which it was most definitely lacking in the Haas era). Right now, Bradley Ray of the Rich Energy OMG Racing Yamaha is leading the Superbikes championship with 216 points — 16 more than his closest title rival. The team’s other rider, Kyle Ryde, sits in fifth place. I can’t say that this sounds like the ideal time to cut ties.

Rich Energy has long been a part of some frankly fascinating sponsorship strategies, but I have to say that the OMG model appears to be one of the most... complex, shall we say.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Racing
Travis Pastrana Is Never Not In Full Send Mode
Travis Pastrana Is Never Not In Full Send Mode
“This car, I get in and sometimes they’re like ‘it’s 700 horsepower’, other times ‘it’s 900 horsepower’, ‘how much power do you want?’ All of it! ... Why would you not turn it up to ‘extra spicy’ all of the time?” - Travis Pastrana When it comes to racing...
Oct 23, 2024
This Year's Indy 500 Did Not Disappoint
This Year's Indy 500 Did Not Disappoint
The moment you knew that might be good was on lap 38, when Scott Dixon’s car briefly died, he lost a lap, and the guy who many people thought would win this year all of the sudden probably wouldn’t. At that point, things were wide open. The race had...
Oct 23, 2024
There Might Be A Second F1 Race In The US This Year So I Have A Brilliant Idea
There Might Be A Second F1 Race In The US This Year So I Have A Brilliant Idea
The Singapore Grand Prix originally scheduled for October 3 has been cancelled for reasons you can already guess. That decision hasn’t been formally announced yet, but . And when it does, Formula 1 will be searching for a replacement. It could come in the form of a second United...
Oct 23, 2024
F1 Attempts To Head Off Baku Qualifying Tomfoolery With A Warning
F1 Attempts To Head Off Baku Qualifying Tomfoolery With A Warning
Formula 1 Race Director Michael Masi has issued a warning to teams ahead of this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Drive too slowly in the run up to your flying laps, and you’re going to be punished. If you’ve watched your fair share of F1 qualifying sessions over the past...
Oct 23, 2024
We Are Living In The Age Of Alfa
We Are Living In The Age Of Alfa
The Alfas have taken over. Millions of Alfas are expected to emerge from their underground hibernation after spending 17 years dormant. The truly striking carapace of these creatures can be seen everywhere, though mostly in Europe these days. As many as a dozen of these periodic Alfa Romaeidae will...
Oct 23, 2024
Jean-Eric Vergne And His Veloce Racing Team Are Taking Extreme E By Storm
Jean-Eric Vergne And His Veloce Racing Team Are Taking Extreme E By Storm
A mere decade ago, the concept of electric racing was unthinkable to the point of almost being laughable—but it didn’t take long before Formula E crushed all expectations. Now, it only took the mere mention of the Extreme E series before some of racing’s most laudable names took to...
Oct 23, 2024
Copyright 2023-2024 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved