Scott Tucker is a curious bird: great at running a winning race team, not so great at staying out of trouble. So, it's curious that Level 5 Motorsports is selling off a ton of equipment right after its reported that the feds might be about to bring charges against Tucker for racketeering.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act not only allows federal prosecutors more time to investigate Tucker, but it also allows them to fine him up to $25,000, sentence him up to twenty years in prison and seize his assets.
Questionable payday lending entity AMG Services Inc. is not only named in the Federal Trade Commission's lawsuit, but it allegedly paid a lot of Scott Tucker's personal expenses, including millions of dollars that went to Level 5.
Tucker has been using Native American sovereign immunity to keep scrutiny off of his online payday lending services, which allegedly charge interest rates far above the legal definition of usury as defined by RICO and deceive borrowers as to the true cost of their loans.
So, before any of these awesome toys could be seized over alleged wrongdoings, you can pick up any number of Level 5's race cars, equipment or haulers from over the years.
Here are some highlights of what's up for grabs.
Any moral quandaries aside, Level 5 has the most pimpin' paddock setup in all of IMSA racing, and now this megahauler/tent trio is up for grabs.
There's even a nice stand to watch on top of the hauler! Haulers are some of the best seats in racing, but also some of the most sketch if you're afraid of being on top of a tall, slippery surface with no handrails. I tried watching a race on top of a hauler once, and I was 99.9999999 percent sure I was either going to slip, fall and die, or accidentally step too hard in the wrong place and go tumbling down between the structural ribs of the trailer itself (and die). Look at that majestic perch with a nice, solid ladder on the way up! Problem solved.
The last time I saw this behemoth of nice, cool shade, it was at the Ferrari Challenge support race for Formula One. Yes, a support race. If it's not too overkill for a support race, by golly, it's just perfect for a six-car Class C assault on the 24 Hours of LeMons' Index of Effluency. Time to fling a cornucopia of Renault Fuegos and Volkswagen Type 4s at the wall until one finally sticks and brings home the nickels, amigo.
Want a Ferrari? Yeah, you want a Ferrari. Level 5 has several of them for sale, all the way up to their GTD-class 458s from this year. It's hard for me to believe they're having to make room for 2015's cars when they've kept cars all the way back to this 2002 360. Behold! It's the Ferrari Doug Demurizzle* should have had.
Maybe they've been for sale a while and are just on the page now. Maybe, if we ignore the FTC investigation and reports of a possible indictment entirely, they are, in fact, bringing in this many cars for 2015. Tucker did purchase an $8 million home in Aspen, Colorado, while the state of Colorado had an active warrant for his arrest. He could just not care about the FTC investigation and be preparing for a multi-car campaign in several different race series, right? If he believes he's not violating any laws, why would he pare down the racing operations?
The team didn't rack up a bunch of wins for being incompetent. From everything I've heard, Level 5 has been a good team to work for. They bring in decent talent so they can win. Level 5 was even offering their services to Boardwalk Ferrari to run their Ferrari Challenge entry, so who knows? Maybe someone else needs the space. Either way, I feel bad for any crew members or drivers who might have a car or a job affected by the FTC's racketeering charges against Tucker's payday lending operation.
Or maybe Level 5 just liked the 360s and 430s enough to keep them around for this long. I mean, they're all a ton of fun, and you only need the latest and greatest 458 to run the current Ferrari Challenge series. There is still the Ferrari-only Challenge Club Racing series for the older cars, never you fear.
I can tell they're primarily a Ferrari shop since they've labelled this 997 a "Porsche 996" on their for sale page. Well, either that or they've got some photos and descriptions mixed up. The description for a 2004 Porsche 911 would be a 996, however, the pictures clearly show a drop-dead gorgeous shiny black 997 Cup.
This brings another moral quandary. I, for one, would love a 997 Cup should I strike oil in my yard tomorrow. This one (if the pictures are of a car for sale) appears to have been run by the highly competent Porsche specialists at Kelly-Moss Racing. Is it better to buy it in well-maintained condition from an entity that was allegedly funded in morally questionable ways, or is it better to wait for the dust to settle on a federal investigation, where the car may very well end up sitting unused in a federal seizure lot for a lengthy period of time?
Looking for a prototype racer instead? Choose from Level 5's excellent selection of Lola, HPD and Oreca P2 and Prototype Challenge racers as well as a Riley Daytona Prototype.
The Two Riley DP XIs can even come with spare parts if need be (and trust me, if you're racing, you need these).
They have every prototype they've been racing since 2010 up for grabs, although, unfortunately, the ex-Dempsey Racing Lola Coupe B1280 has already been sold. Both of the Tudor United SportsCar Prototype Challenge Oreca FLMs are brand new, although both need aero kits.
So, do you need a race car, a transporter or some spares for a Riley DP? Here's your opportunity to pick some up under some, uh, allegedly interesting circumstances.
*Thanks, Regular Car Reviews. We'll never be able to pronounce his name correctly again.
All photos belong to Level 5's "For Sale" page here.
(H/T Eric Rood.)