ArticleNov 10, 2007
Speedway hero helps build brands
Tony Rickardsson is one of Sweden's most famous and best-liked sportsmen.
After six world championship titles in speedway and numerous prizes and
awards, he has switched this year to car racing in the Porsche Carrera Cup
Scandinavia. The cooperation with Swedish Match as principal sponsor will
continue and as Rickardsson himself phrased it, they are "a perfect match."
He is also one of Sweden's most well-known users of snus and his favorite is
General Onyx by Swedish Match.
There are hardly any Swedes who do not
know Tony Rickardsson. He has won nearly
everything that can be won in speedway and
has become so popular that both he himself
and the Rickardsson Racing team are currently
very strong brands. The celebrity status has
also resulted in him being impersonated by
one of Sweden's best comedians, a gratifying
assignment considering Rickardsson's
characteristic dialect and the fact that he has
always been gifted in terms of relationships
with the media.
In addition to being a great sportsman,
his strengths appear to lie in his strong
personality. Swedish people see him as a
secure and thoroughly likable person, who
works hard and has both feet firmly on the
ground. That picture was confi rmed when
we met Tony Rickardsson at the Rickardsson
Racing workshop, located in a beautiful old
mill in his hometown of Avesta.
Official driver for Porsche Sweden
The past year has been something of a new start
for Tony Rickardsson. From a life revolving
almost entirely around speedway since his
early teens, he competed in his final race in
October 2006 and moved on to car racing in
the Porsche Carrera Cup Scandinavia and is
now the official driver for Porsche Sweden.
"From six-time world champion in
speedway to something of a beginner in car
racing may sound like a major step, but I like
new starts, so the venture into the Porsche
Carrera Cup Scandinavia series suits me
perfectly. The route and the struggle to the
goal are what I enjoy the most. It took me 15
years to build a perfect speedway team and I
am now about to build my car racing team.
Teamwork is extremely important; without
my team I am nothing. I am also happy that
I was able to leave speedway on my own
initiative; that I was not forced to quit due to
injuries," explains Rickardsson.
Mutual trust
Tony Rickardsson was able to take the
cooperation with Swedish Match to car
racing. The first contact between them was
in 2000, when he was active in speedway.
That cooperation was successful and Swedish
Match is now one of the principal sponsors
of Rickardsson Racing in the Porsche Carrera
Cup Scandinavia series. The Swedish Match
logo is visible on the metallic blue car and on
Tony Rickardsson's racing suit.
"Our cooperation is a perfect match",
says Rickardsson. "Car sports are enjoyed by a multitude of spectators and I have also
been using Swedish Match's products for a
number of years. The cooperation is based on
mutual trust aimed at improving the image
and strengthening the brands."
Kerstin Brandt, who is responsible for
sponsoring and events at Swedish Match,
agrees.
"Tony is incredibly
professional in terms of preserving the
Swedish Match brand and his own brand. He
is also very committed to customer-related
activities. Tony Rickardsson represents a vast
amount of added value for Swedish Match,"
explains Kerstin Brandt.
General Onyx is his favorite
Rickardsson's favorite snus is General Onyx.
In the past, he used only Ettan loose snus,
but since he discovered General Onyx in
its attractive can, the black and beautifully
packaged portion snus is all he uses now.
"General Onyx is classy. I like order,
so I appreciate the fact that the portion
packages are laid out in the form of a star,"
he emphasizes.
Since the Rickardsson Racing workshop
is a marvel of neatness, order, well-polished
cars and tools, there is no doubt as to what
Rickardsson means. He shows the snus can
holder, which is mounted on the inside of the
Porsche's driver's door, designed for a General
Onyx can.
"There was no room for my snus can in the
racing car since all unnecessary equipment is
removed to make the car as light as possible.
So I came up with the idea to design a snus
can holder. We manufactured it using carbon fiber,
which is known as
`the black gold of racing´, since the
material is both light and strong. I
am now able to pop in a portion of snus on
a straight stretch if I want," says Rickardsson,
with a laugh.
Driver talent is crucial
The Porsche Carrera Cup started in Germany
and France in 1990. In May 2004, the series
had its premiere in Scandinavia and, today,
the Carrera Cup is also held in Asia, Japan,
Australia and the UK.
All participants compete on equal terms,
since engines and transmissions are sealed in
the factory and it is the driver's talent and
the team's professionalism that determine the
winner.
The Porsche Carrera Cup Scandinavia
series received a significant lift when he
decided to quit speedway and invest fully in
the series for 2007.
"My goal is to build the series as much
as possible. It is not only about me but also
about generating publicity around the series,
increasing its status and ensuring that interest
increases in coming years. For example,
the fact that my name is well-known has
contributed to more people making fi nancial
investments in the series. I hope that more
and more people will discover the immense
entertainment provided by car racing."
Driving is an adrenalin kick
Rickardsson had tried out motor rallies in the
past "but there was too little glamour in the
sport," he jokes. "But, he adds, there is also
very little glamour in racing and it requires a considerable amount of physical training.
Nevertheless, it is something of a boyhood
dream come true.
"Driving is extremely enjoyable. It is an
incredible adrenalin kick pushing the car
to its limits and then adjusting its precision
to be able to drive even faster. But the race
itself is only a small part of the whole and
there is a great deal of work between races,"
Rickardsson explains.
He believes that the team has come a long
way in its efforts, although he himself has his
sights set several years ahead with numerous
plans for Rickardsson Racing.
"I can't do anything half-heartedly. I always
invest 100 percent," he says in conclusion.