Charlotte Motor Speedway has gone to market selling new advertising spots around its roval, and the NASCAR venue is looking to brand the circuit in an F1-type style -- meaning fewer companies but bigger branding. CMS this year is holding its fall Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race on its roval circuit for the first time, and it shared renderings of the new inventory ad inventory it has carved out along the track’s route with THE DAILY. CMS VP/Corporate Sales Matt Long has created eight different areas of the circuit to sell advertising at and is looking to land six to eight partners to fill the slots. That includes a mixture of current and new sponsors. The renderings show large signage opportunities more in line with what is typically seen in F1, which only has a few sponsors who get sprawling TV-visible signage. NASCAR tracks typically try to squeeze in as many companies onto ad boards as possible. NBC is airing the Bank of America Roval 400, and the track is looking for partners also interested in supplementing the signage with an ad buy. Long said, “We want that COTA-F1 feel. ... Most of the partners will be new, and if they’re current partners, it will mostly be an upsell. We will make sure (current partners) like Blue Cross & Blue Shield and Bojangles’ are well represented, but most of this stuff is going to be new.”
NEW HOSPITALITY OPTIONS: The introduction of the roval circuit has led to new corporate hospitality options. Some of those have been set up because the roval runs on parts of the infield where there used to be corporate hospitality chalets, while others are being newly unveiled because the roval gives new vantage points of the track. Bank of America is moving its infield hospitality to temporary chalets, and the usual Paddock Club building it typically occupies is now going to be sold as a premium club. The club fits about 250 people and will cost $700 for the race weekend per person for a package that is includes essentially all of the track’s amenities from food and beverage to garage passes and indoor and rooftop views to watch the race. Long said the track has already sold about 100 of the 250 slots. The track also has set up an area overlooking Turn 2 of the roval, where there is a direct sight into the road course portion of the roval, for temporary hospitality structures. CMS is saying that the buzz around the roval has seen it up in general admission sales and premium seating for the race year over year, though it has not disclosed specifics.
