Primary Sponsor Could Pony Up $25-30M For Earnhardt's New Ride

Sponsorship Of Earnhardt Jr.'s Ride In '08 Likely To Cost $25-30M

The new sponsor of Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Hendrick Motorsports team next season could pay $25-30M, according to Marty Smith of ESPN.  Smith said of Earnhardt’s current primary sponsor at DEI, “Budweiser isn’t even among the top ten most lucrative team sponsorships in the sport.  So therefore, they would really have to pony up some money for what ... could be the most lucrative team sponsorship in the history of NASCAR.”  ESPN’s Terry Blount offered three reasons why Budweiser reportedly will not follow Earnhardt to Hendrick: 1) PepsiCo "is probably willing to bring more money to the table than Budweiser;" 2) "people around Earnhardt – including Jr. himself – kind of want to change his image. … They want him to have a broader appeal.  That’s why they’ve recently cut deals with (Sony and adidas), and I think they see a soft drink company as a way for them to have a broader appeal and a bigger fan base and bigger marketability;" and 3) When Budweiser left Hendrick Motorsports in '99, it "wasn’t an amicable parting.”  Smith added with Budweiser, Earnhardt was “unable to focus on kids.  With another sponsor that isn’t alcohol-related, he will be able to” (“NASCAR Now,” ESPN2, 7/11).  In Charlotte, David Poole cites a source saying that PepsiCo’s AMP energy drink will “factor in the deal for Earnhardt Jr. at Hendrick” (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 7/12).

NOT SO FAST: The AP's Jenna Fryer noted one deal “already in the pipeline … is a candy bar that Earnhardt has had a hand in developing.” But JR Motorsports VP/Marketing & Brand Development Thayer Lavielle said of the marketing strategy for Earnhardt, “We want a small stable of partners, to align him with brands that he's comfortable with and projects that are fun for him.  ... We are in a good position where we can say 'Hey, I don't know if that one fits for us,' and make careful choices when it comes to his lifestyle management" (AP, 7/11).

NEW FRIENDS: Yesterday’s episode of “Golf Central” showed LPGAer Natalie Gulbis, an adidas endorser, visiting Daytona as a guest of Anheuser-Busch at the Pepsi 400.  Gulbis interviewed Earnhardt and asked whether signing with adidas will result in more fashion-forward racing gear.  Earnhardt: “That’s the plan. I’m going to see what their ideas are, but I’m a traditionalist, so I’m not going to get too crazy” (“Golf Central,” Golf Channel, 7/11).