August 28, 2006 - RotaryNews.Com was made aware that long time rotary racing stalwart Dennis Spencer had just bought up all the race equipment and race car of Miracle Motorsports, one of the most successful ALMS P2 teams in the last few seasons. So RN.COM was curious to find out if Team Spencer had any plans for an assault on the ALMS P2 class in ’07, along side the B-K Motorsports Team.

Here is what, team principal and owner, Dennis Spencer had to say!


RotaryNews.Com: Dennis, we think a lot of Rotary enthusiasts out there would love to see Team Spencer Motorsports as a second RE team running a P2 ALMS racer.

Dennis Spencer: Your probably right. The hard truth is that success when racing at the level of the ALMS take years of experience and in the end is very expensive. In the past we gained our experience being self funded ambassadors of the Brand. Being self funded, requires you to make sacrifices and decisions that heighten your dedication and passion.

That being the case, someone else has to start or the years required never accrue.

When you finally get it right, it's usually accompanied by an awakening that you can't "justify" tossing away a couple of million dollars each year. Notice I said "justify" and not "afford." There are lot's of people out there that can do both. I can't.

By the time you get it right, you've built great fans, shared what you do with a lot of special people and developed some very deep relationships. The resulting emotions makes it even harder to make the correct financial choices.

I get a lot of e-mail from the Rotary Enthusiasts you speak of. Some of it not very nice. They can't understand why our team isn't on the track carrying the banner for the Brand. It's as if it's the fault of "Team Spencer Motorsports" that a Mazda isn't on the podium or entered in every race.

There is a lot more to it that's transparent to the enthusiast. Mazda and Sponsors in partnership with Mazda make business decisions that are in accordance with their long-term strategic plans.

As harsh as it sounds, the enthusiasts don't pay the bills so they aren't the decision makers. Now I'm probably going to get a lot more e-mail.

In 2005 Mazda renewed it's interest in Prototype racing. While our hat has always been in the ring, there are a lot of teams lined up that would like support.

There is only so much to go around. Right now, it's difficult enough to fund one team. Mazda is working around the clock on sponsorship options. It takes more than a season to develop relationships and programs that bring serious dollars to the table.


RotaryNews.Com: It seems you're not seriously thinking of fielding a self-funded team, but will do so if a sponsor comes along… correct?

Dennis Spencer: Well, you're right. It's back to the "justification v affordability" conundrum.

As far as the Miracle Motorsports assets:
All I wanted was the Pit Scooter that Johnny Mac had. He didn't want to piece it out. He wanted to sell everything to one person under one transaction.

So, in order to get the scooter I had to buy the entire team. Only after I bought it did I find out that the scooter didn't come with it. Now I'm stuck with a race car and still want a scooter. Didn't you always want a scooter?

What I do with the car is indeed dependent upon funding. The Spencer team is probably the last of the past still active in development rather than rebuilding of the Endurance Racing Rotary Engine. But remember, there is a lot of new talent learning the ropes of building 3 rotor engines. Speed Source is providing the engines for the post Lime Rock races. This is a good thing.

Yes, the Miracle Motorsports car comes with two very competitive AER (turbo) engines that are proven podium favorites. With the rotary, it's not always about the podium as much as it is the progression of development toward the podium. It's taking the combination of team, chassis and engine to the highest level each component can achieve on any single weekend in a very, very consistent basis.

Endurance isn't a race or a season, it's a lifetime.


Thanks,

Dennis Spencer
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For some really AWESOME pics and videos of Mazda Prototype Racing Check out the Team Spencer Motorsports web site at:

Team Spencer Videos
Team Spencer Pictures