Greg Lutzka severes ties with Street League Skateboarding for Maloof Money Cup and Dew Tour
The list of invited pro skateboarders for the 2011 Maloof Money Cup was unveiled on Thursday, April 21. One of the most noticeable names on the list was that of Wisconsin’s professional skateboarder, Greg Lutzka.
Pro skater and founder of Street League Skateboarding, Rob Dyrdek, have tightened exclusivity rules recently. The new rule has restricted the skateboarders, who are currently signed on with Street League, from participating in any skateboarding event except
Street League and Street League-sanctioned events, which include X Games.
The athletes will be asked to choose between the Street League and the rest of the non-sanctioned skateboarding contests, which include the Maloof Money Cups and Dew Tour events.
Joe and Gavin Maloof, the minds behind the Maloof Money Cup, as well as the owner of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) Sacramento Kings and the Palms Casino in Las Vegas, America, disclosed the invited athletes list for the upcoming Money Cup this
year. It was only after the list was released that everyone came to know of Lutzka’s final decision.
The 27-year-old Lutzka had decided to leave Dyrdek’s event and opted to compete in the Money Cup and Dew Tour instead.
While talking to a journalist from a leading sports network, the pro skater tried to explain his decision. In reference to the exclusivity rules, Lutzka said that he had the utmost respect and appreciation for the initiative that Dyrdek had taken in order
to get skateboarding into a more organised. However, as far as his career is concerned, his preference lies in events that offer him the most appropriate platform to showcase his talents and generate the maximum exposure for his sponsors. According to him,
his decision to choose Dew Tour over Street League based primarily based on the network TV package and the relatively broader fan base that Dew Tour provides.
Lutzka’s statement did not go too well with Dyrdek, who in response referenced the pro skateboarder’s previous sponsor association with Monster Energy, a relationship that had recently ended. He said that the last thing he ever wanted was for Lutzka to lose
his major sponsor after a rather unimpressive performance at Street League.
He further said that, “Despite being signed to a three-year agreement we understood that the companies that are willing to pay Greg expect him to win contests. It was clear after the first year that would never happen in Street League, so when Greg asked
us to release him we decided it was the right thing to do.”
It is unfortunate that the ties between Lutzka and Dyrdek did not end on a good note. However, now that the pro skateboarder has made up a decision, he needs to concentrate on the upcoming Money Cup and Dew Tour.
The Maloofs will be hosting the first of the four contests scheduled for this year in New York on June 4-5.
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