The 1996 movie Jerry Maguire brought the job of sports management straight into the limelight. In the movie, Maguire strikes out on his own and banks his entire career on a single up-and-coming athlete. The movie fulfills its’ Hollywood script destiny when his client emerges as a superstar and catapults both of them into fame and fortune.

Well, I think that Norm Viano, aka the Lawdog, has achieved something this year that is as deserving of a movie screenplay as anything that Leigh Steinberg (the real life inspiration for the Jerry Maguire character) ever pulled off. Lawdog got both of the Bostrom brothers signed to rare factory contracts despite performances over the past two years that would have most riders begging for a privateer ride. Clearly Viano is a miracle worker when it comes to sports management.

Now let me say for a moment that I’m sorry to be so harsh when talking about the brothers Boz. I think both guys are talented racers and both bring excitement to the grid whenever they line up. I’m glad to see they will be in the AMA paddock in ‘06 and wish them both the best next year but I think a critical analysis of their 2005 seasons highlights just how amazing these recent signings really are:

First, there is the second return of Ben Bostrom to AMA Superbike. Bennie was off to Europe this past summer with dreams of redeeming himself after a disappointing season aboard a Ducati in 2002 followed by two unremarkable seasons in the AMA on a Honda. He signed on with the Renegade Honda team but was behind the eight ball from the beginning due to a lack of testing and a shortage of bike parts. I think everyone involved will admit that the season sucked for everyone involved. BBoz’s best finish was a sixth in race two at Valencia but he was only inside the top ten on four occasions (the 6th and three 10th place finishes). These tepid results were amplified by ten rounds in which which zero points were scored, including four DNFs, and also by two crashes resulting in significant injuries. The worst of these accidents occurred at Silverstone where Ben had a vicious highside which resulted in broken vertebra. This was a tough year to be in the Renegade pits. I don’t think anyone would point the finger at Ben and say the team’s struggles were his fault but nonetheless his record for the past few seasons had to make his manager’s job pretty difficult when finding him a new gig. This last week it was announced that Ben would be teaming with Neil Hodgson in the AMA Superbike series on the Ducati Austin bike. Clearly Viano has pulled the rabbit out of the hat with this signing!

The person leaving Ducati to free up that coveted factory ride is Ben’s brother Eric Bostrom. EBoz’s issue for the past couple of seasons as primarily been one of consistency rather than outright poor results. 2005 was a bipolar year for Eric. On one hand, he was the second winningest rider in the AMA Superbike class, behind champ Mat Mladin, with three victories. Bostrom won his traditional race at PPIR but then backed that up with convincing victories at both Laguna Seca and Mid-Ohio. There were glimpses there of the Eric of old when he was an animal aboard the Kawasaki ZX-7R. However, the other side of the story has been one of Eric struggling to come to grips with the handling of the Ducati. At nearly half the AMA Superbike races in 2005 Eric finished outside the top five. This in a year when only seven full factory riders were on the grid. Eric’s third place finish in the championship, along with his race wins, certainly looked good on paper but anyone who watched the season unfold knows just what a disappointing the year was for the younger Bostrom. Earlier this week Yamaha put out a press release confirming that Eric Bostrom would be riding their bikes in Superstock and Formula Xtreme in 2006. I’m sure Eric would rather be racing in Superbike but that fact that he has another factory ride is another minor miracle for the Lawdog.

I do hope that the two Bostrom brothers get their mojo back in 2006 as I think both provide a critical combination of talent and personality to the paddock. Both are past AMA champs (Ben with AMA Superbike, Supermoto and 600cc Dirt Track titles, Eric with AMA Supersport, Formula Xtreme, Supertwins and 883cc Dirt Track titles) and both riders have won AMA races in the past two years. In fact, I’ll even go so far as to admit that I’m a huge fan of Eric Bostrom and that I’m excited at the prospect of watching him back aboard a four cylinder machine. But until the two riders have an opportunity to step up their on-bike performance the real star of their team is the Lawdog who got his rider’s signed to contracts which I would have previously thought only possible in a cheesy Hollywood movie.

Good job Mr. Viano and good luck to your riders.

[image from the Eric Bostrom web site