Calgary area Rockyview Motorsports Park design revealed

[pylon]

Originally Posted by DoubleK

Here is an article from 2012. It has only gotten worse from there.

You are confusing paying, with bringing sponsorship money.

If a driver has a sponsor willing to throw 45 million at a team, under the conditions he drives, the sponsor is footing the bill, not the driver.

Think of it this way. Let's say Derek Engelland was endorsed by RBC, and RBC said they will pay 20 million a year for the naming rights of the home team arena under the condition he is signed by a team, there would be a scramble to sign him, no matter how good or bad he is. If they paid him $5 million a year, the team is still netting $ 15 million to sign him. But Derek Engelland isn't footing the bill, RBC is.

That is of course if it was allowed under the NHL CBA. Which I am pretty sure it wouldn't be. That also tells you about the legitimacy of F1. It is a joke organization now, headed by a Hitler loving, tax evading, misogynistic, gangster. Hence why I won't even give the sport the time of day anymore.

[DoubleK]

Originally Posted by pylon

You are confusing paying, with bringing sponsorship money.

If a driver has a sponsor willing to throw 45 million at a team, under the conditions he drives, the sponsor is footing the bill, not the driver.

No, I'm not. That is precisely what a 'pay driver' is.

Clearly we aren't going to agree, so best to just let it go.

[pylon]

The two of you said this:

Originally Posted by DoubleK

Of which there are only 20 on the planet, of which only 8 or so are paid to drive.

Originally Posted by lorenavedon

a lot of drivers actually pay to drive just to get their foot in the door

But the driver isn't footing the bill, the sponsor is. The driver is still paid to drive by the team, who is funded by the sponsor.At worst, the sponsor is paying the drivers salary, but they are still being paid. A 23 year old driver isn't giving the sponsor 45 million to launder through the team, and only getting back 1% of it.

But the term pay driver is harder to define nowadays. Many of the so-called pay drivers in F1 today come with good racing records. Vitaly Petrov, Sergio Pérez, Pastor Maldonado and Bruno Senna are all GP2 race winners, drivers with their records usually move up into F1 anyway. The fact that they can bring backing just make them more attractive than their similarly-qualified rivals.[3]

They may not be as qualified as some drivers, but they have a great sales pitch, and bring sponsors with them.

[DoubleK]

A pay driver is a driver for a professional auto racing team who, instead of being paid by their car owner, drives for free and brings with him either personal sponsorship or personal or family funding to finance the team's operations. This may be done to gain on-track experience or to live the lifestyle of a driver in a particular series when one's talent or credentials do not merit a paying ride

I don't know how to put it any clearer.