committed to entertaining corporate clients and grocery distributors at 14 races. Tabasco pepper sauce came in last year, spending close to half the product’s marketing budget on a car driven by Todd Bodine. That hurts NASCAR, which would prefer to see 43 well-funded cars show up and keep the big-bucks sponsors happy. Sometimes, it can be one of the biggest spenders. Only 43 cars will start, however, which means that 16 sponsors went home empty-handed. There were 59 cars here hoping to get into the Daytona 500, nearly all with substantial sponsorship. Applying them all, making sure they are in the proper place and alignment, can take half a day.įor enterprising sponsors, that-along with a check-is only the beginning. Sometimes in surprising ways.Ī set of decals for one car costs about $1,500. Those don’t include their salaries, which are said to be about $1.5 million, or their race winnings. Forbes estimated Gordon’s at more than $8 million. ![]() A poultry processing company, Pardue, provides the chicks and buys them when they’re grown, so there is a Pardue decal on Earnhardt’s car.Įarnhardt’s endorsement portfolio was worth $15.5 million last year, according to Sports Business Journal. Earnhardt raises 32,000 chickens on his 400-acre farm in Moorseville, N.C. Sponsor decals don’t always involve team products, however. For instance, Snap-on Tools provides all the tools used on Earnhardt’s cars, a value of more than $1 million. Gordon’s $9 million in earnings last year came largely from Winston.įor seeing their decals on the sides of cars, or patches on drivers’ uniforms, manufacturers supply free equipment. The 1999 champion is guaranteed $2 million at the NASCAR Winston Cup awards banquet at New York’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in December. Richard Petty claimed the champion’s purse of $40,000, presented at the Plaza Hotel in Daytona Beach. In 1971, when the cigarette brand became the first major non-automotive sponsor in the sport, the point fund was $100,000. The growth of Winston’s involvement has matched that of NASCAR. That accounts for a $5,010,000 point-fund bonus, $1,338,000 in purses for two races-the Winston, NASCAR’s version of an all-star game, at Charlotte, N.C., and the Winston Open, a preliminary to the Charlotte race-and $5 million in Winston No Bull 5 bonuses in conjunction with today’s Daytona 500, the Las Vegas 400, the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, the Mountain Dew Southern 500 at Darlington, S.C., and the Winston 500 at Talladega, Ala.Īlthough Sports Marketing Enterprises, which operates RJR sports promotions, will not disclose figures, the amount of money it spends probably doubles the prize fund, what with cross-promotions at every race that include show cars, the new Winston Thunder Theatre that shows IMAX-style racing pictures, signs and a six-man marketing and public relations team headed by Cliff Pennell. This year, RJR will put up more than $11 million for Winston Cup competition. Reynolds Tobacco Co., whose Winston brand name has helped finance NASCAR’s growth since 1971. Purse and prize money comes largely from R.J. “Or if it’s the other way around, I have Dale get a share of what Richard brings in. “When I negotiate an endorsement contract for Dale, like Coca-Cola for instance, I write Richard into the contract too,” Hawk said. In most professional sports, agents and athletes battle over money with team owners, but most Winston Cup drivers and owners operate as partners. Money comes from four primary sources-sponsors, endorsements, purses and bonus prizes, and equipment manufacturers. All the pieces must fit, and be in the proper place.” ![]() I liken a winning racing team to a Rubik’s Cube. ![]() “You couldn’t do what they’ve done with just a great driver, just a great car, or an open pocketbook. “Look at Gordon, his team has Ray Evernham and the Rainbow Warriors crew, the best in the garage area, they have the fastest and most reliable Chevrolet on the track, and they have great finances from DuPont. “You can’t do it with only one, not even with two, you need all three. “To build a winning team, you need three major ingredients-people, equipment and money,” Hawk said. That would have the major sponsors coughing up $5 million to $7 million to have their names in big print on the sides of their cars and on the chest, collar and sleeves of their drivers’ uniforms.Īssociate sponsors, such as Coca-Cola, AC Delco and Team Realtree on Earnhardt, or Pepsi and Quaker State on Gordon, help up the ante on successful teams. In some cases, particularly for middle-of-the-pack teams, a single sponsor may foot 90% of the team’s expenses. Those major sponsors account for 60%-70% of a team’s sponsorship income. All of the contenders have one major sponsor, DuPont Automotive Finishes for Gordon, GM Goodwrench for Earnhardt, Valvoline lubricants for Martin.
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