Guides › Contracts and the transfer market

Contracts and the transfer market: negotiate, buy and sell

Every driver and staff member in Undercut Racing Manager has a contract – and since every team is run by a real manager, your best drivers can be bought away if you aren’t paying attention. This guide helps you negotiate smartly and make profitable deals.

How a negotiation works

You negotiate from the person’s profile page via the “Negotiate contract” button. There you see the person’s demands and wishes, and you build your own offer: weekly wage, number of years, signing bonus, performance bonuses, buyout clause and – for drivers – possible first-driver status.

The most important tool is the “Probability of accepting” percentage, which updates instantly as you change the offer, together with a list of what pushes the chance up or down. Use it actively: adjust one term at a time and see what moves the number most. It often turns out that contract length or a signing bonus does more than a higher weekly wage – and a one-off bonus is cheaper than a wage paid every week for several years.

The person can accept, reject or make a counter-offer. But patience is limited: after a few attempts in a row the person loses interest and the negotiation is called off. Make a well-thought-out first offer rather than haggling in small steps.

What affects the chance of a yes?

• The relationship with the team (0–100). 50 is neutral; 100 gives +10 percentage points and 0 gives −10. The relationship rises by +8 every time you agree on a contract.
• Your Team Principal’s negotiation skill. It can move the chance by up to about 10 percentage points compared with an average Team Principal.
• The team’s quality and morale. A successful team with high morale is easier to sign for.
• Interest from other teams. If a driver has little time left on his contract, other teams can make wage offers, which raises his demands.

The buyout clause – both a weapon and a risk

If a driver has a buyout clause, any other manager can pay the full amount and take over the contract immediately, without you being able to stop it. You get the money, but you lose the driver.

A few things to keep in mind:

On your own Team Page there is the Rivals list, which shows which teams you have bought out drivers or staff from in recent seasons – and of course your opponents have one too.

First-driver status

A driver with first-driver status expects to be favoured, and an active first-driver contract gives the car a small extra contribution in the race. But there’s a downside: the driver gets +1 relationship every time he finishes ahead of his teammate, and −3 when the teammate finishes ahead. Only give the status to a driver who really is better – and feel free to use team orders to support him (see the tactics guide).

When the contract runs out

Every season “Years left” drops by one. When only one year remains, the contract is marked as Expiring, and you choose between negotiating an extension, waiting and seeing, or letting the contract expire. If you let a driver contract expire, the reserve driver takes the seat – or a rookie is recruited if the reserve bench is empty.

For drivers approaching 30 it is often wise to extend for a shorter period. Ability starts to drop after 30, and a long contract with a high wage then becomes a burden.

The transfer market

All ongoing auctions are listed under the Market tab. An auction runs for exactly seven days, and when time is up the person goes to the highest bidder – provided the buyer can afford it and has room in the squad when the auction is decided.

As a buyer

• Decide your maximum price before you place your first bid, and stick to it.
• Check your budget and squad size before the deadline. A winning bid you can’t afford or have no room for doesn’t go through.
• Look at age and driving style, not just ability – see the staff guide.
• Check the transfer history. There you can see what similar drivers have actually been sold for, which is the best basis for a reasonable bid.

As a seller

• Sell drivers before the decline after 30 shows in the numbers, not after.
• Replace the weakest in the crew with someone better when you can, and sell staff in Reserve that you don’t need. They draw a wage every week but don’t contribute in the race.
• An auction is cancelled if you fire the person in the meantime, so let it run its course.

Summary