A new ad campaign debuted this weekend for CART's FedEx
Championship Series supporting the opening race of the
season, the Grand Prix of Miami. The 30-second TV spots
featured shots of the drivers as they prepare to climb into
their cars, as well as racing footage with classical music
in the background. The campaign, developed by NY-based
Balet & Albert, again features the tagline "Feel The Speed."
TV spots will air on ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, TBS, the Discovery
Channel, the Weather Channel and FX. Print ads, which will
have a "Movie Poster" look, will appear in publications
including Maxim, Esquire, TSN and ESPN Magazine (CART).
NOTES: MCI, the Official Communications Company of
CART, will present the first-ever Fed Ex Championship Series
Fantasy Racing Game this season. Participation will be
free, and entrants will be able to play on both a season-
long and event-by-event basis. Entry forms will be placed
in The Sporting News and other racing pubs. The grand prize
is a Toyota 4Runner (CART)....Following its first week of
trading on the NYSE, CART "was valued in the neighborhood
of" $275M, with each racing team's net worth at a "minimum"
of $7M. CART President Andrew Craig: "We had 10 times the
demand over the subscribed shares." Craig said proceeds
raised were "just under" $75M (IND. STAR-NEWS, 3/14).
