Xfinity this season will change the product it markets in NASCAR, switching from its X1 cable to its Xfi internet. This season marks Xfinity’s fourth serving as title sponsor of NASCAR’s secondary series as part of a 10-year deal. The Comcast brand promoted X1 in its first three years of the deal. But Comcast Exec Dir of Sports Brand Strategy Matt Lederer said that the company thought now was a good time to shift the focus to keep the NASCAR program fresh. Xfinity is promoting Xfi at tracks with a roll-a-ball carnival game.
MASTER CLASS: LiftMaster has signed a personal services agreement with driver Kevin Harvick, keeping the company in NASCAR after it departed Hendrick Motorsports as a sponsor last year. Harvick, who has won two of the first three Monster Energy Cup Series races in ’18, now has 12 companies he endorses.
SAFETY FIRST: IndyCar and IMS have signed a multiyear deal with American Medical Response that will change the name of IndyCar’s safety team from Holmatro Safety Team to AMR IndyCar Safety Team. AMR’s logo and red, white and blue colors will now be on the safety team’s firesuits, trucks and transporters, effective with this weekend’s season opener in St. Petersburg. AMR last year became a similar partner with NASCAR. The safety team is the group of people who respond to crashes on track.
