Is the AVN Racing effort real?
Wall Street has always been hesitant to take the leap into Adult Entertainment. Only a handful of adult entertainment companies are traded on public markets, and representing less than one half of one percent of the total Adult Entertainment market. But, the world of adult finance is about to change.
AdultVest, founded by hedge fund veteran Francis Koenig, seeks to bring sound financial practices to the adult entertainment business– not to mention lots of capital. AdultVest currently is raising money for two private equity funds which will be used exclusively for adult industry transactions. According to Koenig, the firm’s founder and Managing Director, “Our funds look for strong brands with proven track records." AdultVest, Koenig explained, “will add value [to the companies it acquires] by consolidating expenses and providing staff for accounting and reporting." More at AEToday.com
07/06/07 This rumor is upgraded to 'strong' today. AutoRacing1.com has learned that AVN Racing will be making some announcements in the coming weeks with regard to a Champ Car effort. As we rumored previously, don't be surprised if they put AVN on a car this year for a couple of races to see how well it is accepted.
06/29/07 AutoRacing1.com spoke to Russ Herriott, CEO and President of AVN Racing today to try and ascertain how real this rumored team is.
"It is a serious effort to put a car on the track for 2008, and we may even run a race or two this year as a test for us and for Champ Car to see if it makes sense to do a full season in 2008," Herriott told AutoRacing1.com. "We are putting all of our deals together and looking at possibly a 1-car team. We presented to Champ Car what our plan was and expect they will do whatever they have to with existing and future sponsors to make sure it isn't going to cause them any problems. This isn't going to be some sleazy endeavor. Everything will be done tastefully and within whatever guidelines Champ Car establishes.
"The press release that went out was meant for the adult film industry and not for the racing community. The purpose of putting a car in the LA Show was to ascertain the reaction of the adult and fan base, and the racing fan base. It was overwhelmingly positive. We received tremendous compliments as to how it was presented. 3-hour long lines formed to get autographs of the movie stars."
06/29/07 Regarding the AVN Racing announcement that they want to enter Champ Car in 2008 (see related Hot News item) we are now hearing that it could very well be a two car team if Champ Car allows them into the series with around an $8M annual sponsor package from AVN.