Mass. equity firm takes control of Richard Petty's NASCAR franchise
12:59 PM Wed, Jun 11, 2008 | Permalink
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By Gene Laverty Boston Ventures, a private equity firm in Massachusetts that owns stakes in Six Flags amusement parks and Motown Records, has added a controlling interest in NASCAR Petty Enterprises to its media and entertainment holdings. David Zucker, 45, will be chief executive officer of the Mooresville, N.C.-based company, Kyle Petty, who co- owned the team with his father Richard Petty, said in a televised press conference. Financial terms and details of the transaction won't be released. The deal continues a trend in NASCAR that began last year as smaller teams look for more capital, resources and sponsors to compete with larger race teams. Petty, which has the most wins and championships among Nascar teams, hasn't won a race since 1999. "Everything has changed so much from where we first started," Richard Petty, NASCAR's winningest driver, said at the news conference in Concord, N.C. "As time progressed it got away from us from the family standpoint. Other investors were coming in making Nascar grow from the outside in. We just got behind. We tried to do it from the inside out. We sat down and talked about it. If we're going to play this game, we got to get in this game." Boston Ventures is the latest in a series of private equity investors in NASCAR as costs squeeze teams in what the racing league claims is the No. 2 most-watched sport on television. Last year, Boston Red Sox owners Fenway Sports Group bought a 50 percent stake in Roush Racing, hedge fund founder Rob Kauffman purchased half of Michael Waltrip Racing, and Montreal Canadiens owner George Gillett snapped up a majority stake in Ray Evernham Motorsports. Leverage in Petty Name "I suspect Boston ventures would have had a lot less of an interest in NASCAR if it wasn't for the Roush Fenway deal," said Marc Ganis, president of SportsCorp Ltd., a Chicago-based sports marketing consultant. "There's a lot of leverage in the Petty name. They'll come back, especially with proper capitalization." Petty has 268 victories, including nine Daytona 500 wins, and 10 Nascar championships. The company was started by Lee Petty, Richard Petty's father, in 1949 as Petty Engineering. The name was changed to Petty Enterprises in 1969. The family-owned business has never had an outsider at its head. Lee Petty started racing at Charlotte, N.C., in the first race of what would become NASCAR's top Sprint Cup Series. Richard Petty started racing in 1958 and went on to take seven championships and 200 wins, a NASCAR record. Kyle Petty Kyle Petty, Richard Petty's son, started racing in 1979 and has eight wins in NASCAR's top series, though none have come in a Petty Enterprises-owned car. Kyle Petty continues to drive to raise awareness of the family's Victory Junction Gang Camp charity, he said in a March interview. The camp was started as a memorial to Kyle's son Adam Petty, who in 2000 was killed at age 19 in a racing accident. The Richard Petty Driving Experience, an affiliate of Petty Enterprises that offers fans an opportunity to drive or ride in racecars, will be brought into the company and expanded to include a driving-safety school, Zucker said. Driver Bobby Labonte, whose contract was set to expire at the end of the season, also signed a four-year contract extension. "I know I really do appreciate the opportunity that was given to me, Labonte said. "We are moving forward and look forward to being more competitive week in and week out." Petty, which fields the No. 43 car of Labonte and the No. 45, plans to add another to its stable. 
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