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The Man Behind $2 Billion in Motorsports Deals | Wes Zirkle, Zirkle Advisors
On today's show I sat down with Wes Zirkle, founder of Zirkle Advisors and an outside general counsel in sports and motorsports, about his unconventional legal path and major deal stories. He describes his start at CMG Worldwide, working in celebrity licensing and infringement, and doing an early motorsports deal with the 2001 Aerosmith Indy 500 car. He then joined Just Marketing Inc. (JMI), growing with the agency internationally, and meeting Bernie Ecclestone during F1 work. He was also present when IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard received Jeffrey Katzenberg's pitch that became DreamWorks' Turbo. After leaving agency life and opening his own firm in 2020, Zirkle discusses representing teams and drivers, including deals involving Ed Carpenter Racing and managing Christian Rasmussen's career and visa while fundraising through Road to Indy. If you like this episode and want to hear more Get IN. episodes where I interview Hoosiers making a difference, visit getindiana.com/podcast. You are going to learn about: - General Counsel in Motorsports - Opening a Firm - IndyCar Sponsors and How Drivers Profit Check out these great clips from the show: 00:32 Guest Introduction: Wes Zirkle, Zirkle Advisors 02:44 Law School Unconventional Path 05:10 Celebrity Licensing Explained 08:12 Aerosmith Indy 500 Deal 14:44 Building Sponsorship Activation 26:19 Turbo Movie Pitch 28:24 Private Equity Exit 30:28 Starting Own Firm 32:58 First Client Big Exit 33:53 New Company Stake 34:04 Ed Carpenter Connection 35:26 Tony George Praise 36:46 Outside General Counsel 37:54 ECR Majority Sale 40:03 Meeting Christian Rasmussen 41:10 Bad Management Contract 45:12 Helping a Foreign Driver 47:38 P1 Visa and Official Manager 48:37 Funding IndyNext Season 50:49 Scrambling for Sponsors 54:06 Winning and Finding IndyCar Seat 55:29 Road to Indy Costs 57:53 When Drivers Earn Money 59:28 Indy 500 Sponsorship Math 01:02:25 Biggest IndyCar Sponsors 01:04:26 Why Brands Choose IndyCar 01:05:46 Java House Sampling Strategy 01:06:37 Splenda Ads And Usage 01:06:57 Lundgaard Stardom Talk 01:07:28 Indy 500 Favorites And Testing 01:08:02 Prize Money And Bonuses 01:11:24 Do Drivers Really Profit 01:13:03 Merch Money And Licensing 01:16:20 Chuck Berry Guitar Deal 01:23:13 Indiana Memory On Grid 01:26:14 Hidden Gem Center Lake 01:27:07 Hoosier Spotlight Obvious Shirts 01:31:02 Why Indiana Feels Like Home Get IN. is brought to you by our friends at Sweetwater. Whether you are looking to start a podcast or level up your current show you need to hit them up.
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