Leader of Dance Legends Faithless Trusts University To Fuel Racing Success
19 December 2007
Front row centre, l to r) Drivers Richard Marsh and Maxi Jazz (of Faithless), and tutor Matt Bromley, with Events Management students at the University of Derby's Devonshire Campus, Buxton.
The opportunity for students to work with a real client demonstrates the excellent links our course has with industry...
”Conor Moss, Events Management MA Programme Leader.
Faithless frontman Maxi Jazz has topped the dance charts but he’s turning to students from the University of Derby Buxton to mastermind a sponsorship deal to make him a winner with an entirely different ‘wheels of steel’.
The UK soul and dance music artist - whose hits include Insomnia and God Is A DJ - is also a keen motor racing enthusiast in his spare time. He even has a personal website - www.maxijazzracing.co.uk - devoted to his pursuit.
Together with experienced racing driver and businessman Richard Marsh, of Ashbourne, Derbyshire, he will be part of a two car Ferrari team entered in the 2008 British GT Championship.
Helping raise the £500,000 annual sponsorship the team needs will be students on the Events Management degree programme at the University of Derby’s Devonshire Campus, Buxton, who will run corporate events associated with race weekends, other promotional events such as merchandise giveaways and concerts.
The programme tutors (Franc Avila, Conor Moss and Matt Bromley) teach students about the planning, financing, marketing, project management, and risk management behind staging sporting events, conferences, exhibitions, festivals, product launches and trade shows.
To give students practical experience three class projects were set to identify how to raise sponsorship for the racing car team, plan six national events and to select the most appropriate venues after careful market research. The students then had to present their projects to Maxi and Richard.
Richard said the most enthusiastic students, or those with the most convincing marketing pitch, were selected to actually put their ideas into practice.
The 2008 British GT Championship will feature eight race weekends between March and September on major tracks including Donington Park, Silverstone and Brands Hatch.
Drivers compete to cover the greatest distance in just one hour. There are two races each weekend, with the team clocking up the most points over all eight events winning the Championship.
Richard, who began his amateur motor racing career at the same race meet as Maxi around ten years ago, said: "We need ?500,000 to run both the cars and to make sure we offer good service to our sponsors.
"We have sponsor packages costing from £5,000 upwards, all of which have been given great attention so as to offer significant return on investment for our partners.
"The team trying to raise that sponsorship includes myself, my company A-Tech Racing (which provides race vehicles and support) and the University of Derby. It’s often the latter that gets people’s attention, with them wanting to know how the University is involved."
Maxi added: "This is a serious Championship and it is a great opportunity for the students to work alongside a professional team on a project such as this. I am very excited as I think the sponsors, students and team can all gain significantly from this."
The guiding principle of Events Management study at the University of Derby Buxton, both on the BA (Hons) and Masters courses, is to give students real hands on experience to prepare them for life in their chosen field.
"The opportunity for students to work with a real client demonstrates the excellent links our course has with industry, and provides the students with an invaluable opportunity to put the theory of sponsorship and Events Management into practice", added Conor Moss, Events Management MA Programme Leader.
If his students raise more than the sponsorship amount they have been set, the intention is for the excess money to be set aside to launch a fund for future University of Derby Buxton events connected with the course.
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For further media information please contact Press and PR Officer Simon Butt on 01332 591891 or 07748 920023, or email s.butt@derby.ac.uk.
Press release by Press and PR Officer Sean Kirby on 01332 593004 or email s.kirby@derby.ac.uk.
