Misra out of running for Vikings

SUN STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

MINNEAPOLIS -- The number of suitors for the Minnesota Vikings continues to dwindle as Wednesday's final-bid deadline approaches.

Las Vegan Shruti Misra has been eliminated from the picture despite her family's claims of possessing $5 billion in real estate and precious metals assets.

Misra, 33, has offered $225 million, with $195 million in cash. But her interest has been rebuffed by the Vikings, who appear intent on pushing her out of the bidding.

Her husband, Anil Gupta, insisted if Misra's latest proposal was not satisfactory to Vikings officials, she would seek another major-league franchise.

"I spoke to the (Misra) family, and it's very unlikely they will go any higher," Gupta said. "If the bid is not good enough, they'll go after another NFL team or an NBA team."

Misra's first offer was for $180 million without even checking the Vikings' financial background, which includes a $21.5 million debt, according to team attorney John Mooty.

The initial bid also included a stipulation Misra could move the team, preferably to Las Vegas, after five years. It was then that Vikings officials likely discounted the possibility of Misra altogether.

But Misra wasn't the only potential candidate to drop out Monday.

Also out of the hunt is J. Bruce Llewellyn, who hoped to become the first black owner of an NFL team. That plan has been scuttled by a much graver concern.

Llewellyn was scheduled to have major surgery today for a serious and unspecified health problem that arose about two weeks ago, shortly before he went public with his interest in buying the Vikings.

That means the Philadelphia soda bottling magnate will not have an offer for the team when final bids are accepted Wednesday.

"The main thing is his health," Mike Lynn, the former Vikings general manager who has served as Llewellyn's point man, said Monday. "He's 70 years old, and when something like this happens, you've got to focus on your health and getting rehabilitated.

"The furthest thing from his mind at this time is making a bid for the Minnesota Vikings."

This is the second time the Vikings have gone through the sale process this year. Tom Clancy was chosen from a group of three bidders in February, only to have his $200 million offer fall apart in May because of a lack of financing.

Glen Taylor, owner of the NBA Minnesota Timberwolves, is the only person who has confirmed that he will submit a bid Wednesday. Taylor also seems to be emerging as the leading candidate to end up with the franchise.

Vikings president Roger Headrick and San Antonio businessman Red McCombs, the losers to Clancy in February, are expected to make new offers. Minnesota Twins owner Carl Pohlad, a former part-owner in the Vikings, is believed to have interest in the team again. That would give Pohlad control of both teams that play in the Metrodome, but he has yet to say publicly that he is interested.

Other bidders also could emerge, just like Clancy did in February, when his interest was kept secret until the day bids were accepted. John Mooty, the attorney who is handling the sale of the team, could not be reached for comment Monday.

Llewellyn proposed buying a 51 percent share of the Vikings, contradicting their plan to sell 100 percent of the team. However, Lynn said the owners were willing to consider Llewellyn's proposal with the caveat that they would have to meet him in person. That meeting was scheduled for last Thursday, but it was cancelled when tests revealed the serious nature of Llewellyn's illness.

"Unfortunately, he became ill and had to go into the hospital and wasn't able to be in Minneapolis to meet with the Viking owners," Lynn said. "But they certainly were interested in at least sitting down and discussing the possibility that he would become the first black American owner of a major sports team."

After receiving the bids Wednesday and choosing a buyer soon after, the Vikings hope to have a purchase agreement finalized within 10 days. They plan to submit the candidate for league approval by the end of July.

Good luck, Lynn said.

"I think that this thing has additional twists and turns that no one can forecast," he said. "Let's see how it goes. So far this thing has become a saga."

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