BRANDWEEK NEWS: CAN PETTY PROMO WISK AWAY NASCAR FANS?

          Lever Brothers is launching a Richard Petty-linked Wisk
     promo this week "to steal some of longtime racing sponsor
     Tide's thunder among [NASCAR's] family market," according to
     Shannon Stevens of BRANDWEEK.  The "estimated" $3M promo,
     featured at grocery stores in the South, was created by GA-
     based API Championship Group.  Stevens: "If the program ...
     is successful, Lever will make heavier commitments to
     NASCAR."  The campaign includes POPs, radio spots and ads in
     Winston Cup Scene/Winston Cup Illustrated, which offer a
     die-cast model of a Petty car via mail-in coupon.  Other
     models are packaged with the detergent (BRANDWEEK, 7/7).
          BRANDWEEK NOTES: Gap and the NBA will stop testing a
     Gap-labeled NBA-licensed apparel line, tested in N.Y., L.A.
     and Chicago stores since late '96.  NBAP Apparel VP Sal
     LaRocca: "Sales were decent, but our imperative of pushing
     29 teams was a different kind of culture than the
     Gap's"....Product featuring the '98 NBA All-Star Game logo
     "is expected" in the New York area within 30-60 days....NC-
     based Wheels Sports Group, which makes NASCAR trading cards,
     completed its purchase last week of motor sports apparel and
     souvenir maker Diamond Sports Group for 485,000 shares of
     Wheels common stock....Fruit of the Loom's BVD brand is
     sponsoring "Extreme Bowling" events in N.Y. and Chicago as
     part of a relaunch, featuring the BVD Extreme Bowling
     Exhibition Team of four "BVD-clad men" wearing helmets and
     in-line skates (BRANDWEEK, 7/7 issue).