Wheels & Deals: Stewart-Haas Racing Fortunate For Sponsors

Stewart Says He Hoped To Find More Sponsorship, But Still In Decent Shape

CHANGING LANES: ESPN.com's David Newton reported the "buzz around the garage last weekend was JR Motorsports is setting the stage to move from the Nationwide to Sprint Cup series to field a team for Brad Keselowski." Keselowski said that he is "negotiating exclusively with Hendrick Motorsports for a fulltime Cup ride in 2010." Hendrick Motorsports "does not have an opening," but team Owner Rick Hendrick "does have ownership in JR Motorsports with Dale Earnhardt Jr." Earnhardt said that it is "just as economical, maybe more, to run a Cup program than Nationwide under today's economic climate." Newton noted sponsors such as GoDaddy.com, which is on Keselowski's No. 88 Nationwide car, "gain more exposure" in the Sprint Cup Series (ESPN.com, 5/20).

NAME VALUE: Friday's edition of the WALL STREET JOURNAL contains a letter to the editor from NASCAR Dir of Business Communications Andrew Giangola responding to a May 11 article titled, "Are Sponsors' Logos Lost in the Crowd?" Giangola writes NASCAR is "different from other sports -- the driver is the sponsor, and fans make that crucial connection." Giangola: "Just about every passionate fan knows Carl Edwards is supported by Aflac, Kyle Busch by M&M's, Tony Stewart by Office Depot and Old Spice, and so on down the line. ... These fans actively support these sponsors by voting with their wallets for the companies helping their drivers go fast" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 5/22).

GOING THE EXTRA MILE: In Milwaukee, Dave Kallmann reported Northern Tool + Equipment has signed on as the title sponsor of the Nationwide Series event at Milwaukee Mile on June 20, now known as the NorthernTool.com 250. No details of the deal were released and "no title sponsor has been named for the Camping World Truck Series race" scheduled for the previous night (JSONLINE.com, 5/21).

Johnson Will Debut Patriotic Paint Scheme At LMS On Sunday

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