A off-road racing legend plus a founder of a major aftermarket company in the off-road industry have signed a 5-year deal with Arctic Cat to help the company develop and market new products.
The name that jumps out first is that of Robby Gordon. Not only is he an off-road truck racing legend and participant in virtually every style of racing — from NASCAR to Indy to the Dakar Rally — he has also recently been tied to Polaris and its Ranger RZR efforts. In fact, the first aggressive four-seater RZR was coined the Robby Gordon Edition. Now, he’s bringing his expertise to one of Polaris’ main rivals. Also notable, though, is the related relationship Arctic Cat now has with Todd Romano, the founder of aftermarket mega-store Dragonfire Racing, which has long worked closely with Polaris and is a go-to shop for a lot of western/desert riders looking to modify Polaris RZR models.
Will all of this result in Arctic Cat gobbling into Polaris’ incredible market domination in the aggressive side-by-side market? Time will tell.
Below is the press release from Arctic Cat.
Arctic Cat Enters Agreement with Robby Gordon and Todd Romano’s SPEED RMG Partners
Partnership focusing on off-road vehicle product innovation and marketing; More details to be announced at Arctic Cat’s dealer show in late August
MINNEAPOLIS–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Arctic Cat Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAT) announced today that it has entered into an exclusive, five-year product development and marketing agreement with famed racer Robby Gordon and his newly formed SPEED RMG Partners LLC with Todd Romano, an aftermarket futurist.
“Our partnership aims to set new standards for product innovation and excitement in the off-road vehicle industry,” said Arctic Cat President and Chief Executive Officer Christopher Metz. “We see significant opportunities to re-imagine what’s possible and create dynamic, end-user focused new products and accessories, in line with our stated strategic growth initiatives. We believe this effort will further enhance our competitiveness and brand position. We will announce further details about this exciting collaboration at our wheeled dealer show later this month. Stay tuned.”
The agreement reflects Arctic Cat’s commitment to the high-performance off-road vehicle market, and its Wildcat™ side-by-sides and accessories. Gordon and Romano will provide research and development consulting on new technologies.
“We sought a partnership with a company that shared our passion for creating new markets with untapped potential,” said Gordon. “Arctic Cat’s vision complements our ideas. We are excited about what we can achieve together.”
Gordon is a recognized pioneer in racing and off-road vehicle design, with 30 years of experience designing and developing state-of-the-art machines. He has proven to be among the most competitive racers at NASCAR, IndyCar, TransAm, International Motor Sports Association (IMSA), International Race of Champions (IROC) and the Dakar Rally. Gordon has won seven international off-road class championships, two stadium series and three Baja 500s. He also created the enormously successful Stadium Super Truck (SST) series.
Romano is the founder of DragonFire Racing and Finish Line Marketing. DragonFire Racing pioneered the development of performance accessories for the UTV/SXS industry and has become an industry Icon. The attention that DragonFire Racing brought to the industry quickly attained international recognition and led to its acquisition. Finish Line Marketing is a recognized leader in the power sports space as an innovative creator of marketing programs that raise consumer awareness and retail demand.
Arctic Cat, in collaboration with Gordon and Romano’s Speed RMG Partners, plans to create the most innovative technology and products the industry has seen.
