Several NASCAR teams this past weekend “jump-started renewal talks with major primary sponsors,” according to Tripp Mickle of SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. Hendrick Motorsports, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, Stewart-Haas Racing, Michael Waltrip Racing and Richard Petty Motorsports are "among the teams with major deals set to end after this season." RPM spent “much of its energy last week connecting with Stanley Tools, which is up for renewal after the season, at a conference the company held in Orlando” Team Owner Richard Petty and driver Marcos Ambrose “both attended the event.” Hendrick Motorsports Owner Rick Hendrick said that his execs “have already started talking to PepsiCo’s Mountain Dew brand team and the National Guard about renewing their sponsorship of Dale Earnhardt Jr.” Hendrick: “I feel good about that. Nothing is done until you do it” (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 2/27 issue). In N.Y., Viv Bernstein noted although some new corporate sponsors “have come, many have cut back on their commitments, and others are backing off as contracts expire.” Not only are there “fewer top teams this season, but they also have less support.” Penske Racing Owner Roger Penske said “a good full-time sponsorship” today is $12-13M compared to the $20-25M sponsorships thought to be common a few years ago. NASCAR Chair & CEO Brian France: “The economy will do that. It will have an effect on the sponsorship model, the funding of the teams and various reasons teams also move around or get smaller.” Driver Jeff Burton said, “The number of sponsors we have in this sport is acceptable. We have more sponsors today spending less money on the sport. But those same sponsors are spending less money on everything they do” (N.Y. TIMES, 2/26).
DADDY WARBUCKS: USA TODAY’s Nate Ryan writes the “biggest benefactor of Danica Patrick's move to the Sprint Cup Series is likely her primary sponsor, Go Daddy.” Go Daddy Founder Bob Parsons yesterday said, “It's been [a] pretty exciting four days. This has been the Danica Daytona 500.” He added, “I knew she'd receive a disproportionate amount of attention. I had no idea to this extent. This is beyond our wildest dreams.” Parsons said of the moving Patrick to the Sprint Cup Series full time next year, “We'll look at that next year. It's going to be driven by what Danica wants to do. We're in NASCAR because Danica wanted to be in NASCAR” (USA TODAY, 2/27). Meanwhile, ESPN’s Jemele Hill wondered of Patrick, “Has she ventured over into Anna Kournikova land where she’s someone known moreso for the marketing, for the off-the-track things that she does as opposed to her actually winning?" ESPN’s Michael Smith: “Her on-track success will probably never equal her popularity at this point” (“The Sports Reporters,” ESPN, 2/26).
FOR THE FUTURE: Joe Gibbs Racing Owner Joe Gibbs said there is a "lot of enthusiasm from our sponsors" in NASCAR. Gibbs said, "I think we’re moving more and more toward all the benefits you can bring off the race track to enhance what you do on the race track. Obviously, we’ve got a great fan base, TV and everything is extremely important. But we’re excited about (business-to-business).” He added, “We’re a marketing arm for a company. Yes, we have TV. We have the driver (who) can do all kinds of promotional stuff. We have the advertising. But it’s all the other things I think we’re evolving towards on business-to-business that add value: show-car programs, all the different creative things you can think of. Cutting videos of myself inside the company, doing monthly updates, all those things that add value. I think that’s where we’re headed” (CHARLOTTE BUSINESS JOURNAL, 2/24 issue).
