COCA-COLA/NASCAR FIVE-YEAR DEAL REPORTEDLY WORTH $100M

          NASCAR and Coca-Cola officially announced a five-year
     marketing partnership which will make Coke the "Official
     Soft Drink" of NASCAR, beginning January 1.  As part of the
     deal, Coca-Cola plans special ads, in-store displays,
     packaging and promotions.  Coca-Cola will also extend its
     interactive sports-themed attractions -- such as Coca-Cola
     Olympic City and Coca-Cola Skyfield at Turner Field -- to
     NASCAR racing.  In addition, a touring, interactive Coca-
     Cola/NASCAR experience will be on display at festivals and
     NASCAR events throughout the U.S.  Along with media support,
     which covers TV, radio, print and the Web, Coca-Cola will
     also feature NASCAR in movie theaters as part of its pre-
     feature programming (NASCAR).  AD AGE reports that the deal
     is worth an "estimated" $100M (AD AGE, 10/10). Coca-Cola
     takes over the sponsorship from PepsiCo (THE DAILY).
          MC-NOTES: McDonald's will renew its funding of Bill
     Elliott Racing for multiple years.  McDonald's has been
     Elliott's primary sponsor since '95 (STAR-NEWS, 10/10). 
     ...InterZine's iRACE has launched a series this week on
     safety in auto racing titled "The Race For Safety" (iRACE).