NASCAR has given Monster Energy an extension to "determine if it wants to remain the Cup series sponsor" after it had faced a Dec. 31 deadline, according to Dustin Long of NBCSPORTS.com. NASCAR President Brent Dewar appeared last night on MRN's "NASCAR Live" and said, "I worked with them very closely in bringing them to the sport. They were just looking to have a full season. They had to Dec. 31 (to determine if to agree to the renewal). We’ve given them an extension to go through the evaluation." Long noted last year marked Monster Energy’s first season as the Cup series sponsor, having "agreed to a deal" about two months before the Daytona 500. The company reportedly has a "two-year deal with a two-year option," though it has "not stated if it will return after this season." Dewar said last year was a "great season with them and any kind of metric that we run we hit the ball out the park with them." Dewar: "They’re different. We’re excited. … It was the right thing to do to give them a little more time to evaluate. We’re letting them do that. We’d love for them to stay for many years, but if they choose not to, we’ve got a great product, we’ll continue on" (NBCSPORTS.com, 1/9).
