IROC Signs new sponsor/adds TMS race date

[rebelracewriter]

Looks like it's going to be a BUSY TMS race weekend!!!

 

Texas Motor Speedway Media Relations, (817) 215-8520

 

TINTON FALLS, NJ (January 15, 2004) - The International Race of Champions has announced the signing of a multi-year agreement with Crown Royal to be the official title sponsor of the IROC Series for 2004 and beyond.

 

IROC is auto racing’s All-Star Game. It is an invitational auto racing series that matches 12 drivers from different disciplines of auto racing in equally prepared cars. The Series consists of four 100-mile races with points awarded for finishing positions. At the end of the fourth race, points are tallied and a champion of champions is named.

 

 

 

The 2004 Crown Royal International Race of Champions Series schedule will begin, per tradition, with race one at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla., on Friday, Feb. 13. New venues added in 2004 will include, Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, on Friday, April 2, and Richmond International Raceway in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, September 9. IROC is also finalizing a fall date for the Crown Royal IROC Championship finale at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in Atlanta, Ga. IROC is in negotiations with Fox/Speed Channel to televise all four events.

 

 

 

With the new Crown Royal sponsorship comes a significant increase in the Series’ prize money. The purse for the 2004 IROC season will be $1.9 million including $1 million to the Series champion. This is a major increase from the 2003 season in which the champion received $250,000 and represents the highest payout for a Series Champion in IROC history.

 

 

 

“Motor sports lines up very nicely with the Crown Royal consumer and we think there is a strong future for our brand in the International Race of Champions Series,” said Rob Warren, Vice President, Marketing, North American Whisky at Diageo. “We are excited about the improvements made to the 2004 series and we look forward to providing the kind of support that will help IROC grow. Our brand team will be very involved in this program and we will use our IROC sponsorship to extend our responsibility messaging and increase overall awareness of the Crown Royal brand.”

 

 

 

IROC President, Jay Signore said, “We are very proud and excited to have Crown Royal as the new title sponsor of the International Race of Champions. We’ve been working very hard throughout the last year to develop new ideas and to find the right partner who would share in our vision of growth for the series. We couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity than this one with Crown Royal. We’re working with first-rate people, and a top-shelf brand that’s on a mission with IROC and its champions to deliver this message to the racing community: Be a Champion, Drink Responsibly.”

 

 

Another big change taking place in 2004 will be the appearance of the Crown Royal IROC cars. Instead of the history-long tradition of drivers having different color cars and numbers, representing their position in the point standings, at each of the four races, a color scheme and car number, representing the driver’s native series team, will be assigned pre-season and will remain with the driver throughout the four events. The pre-assigned car color graphic and utilizing the driver’s team number will better enhance tracking and recognizing the individual drivers throughout the season. The traditional process of a blind draw will still take place among the lot of Crown Royal IROC race cars brought to each event. After the draw, color graphics and numbers will be applied to the field of race cars.

 

 

Signore continued, “We’re very excited about all the new elements for 2004. The driver line-up is impressive, which we will be announcing shortly. We’re also very excited about our negotiations with Speed Channel and the 2004 race tracks, which will include night racing and possibly, some live broadcasts. For the IROC Series, having all of these new and exciting elements taking place in addition to the Crown Royal sponsorship is like striking gold – and purple.”

 

 

 

Crown Royal, America's leading super premium whisky, has a tradition as long and distinctive as its taste. Specially blended to commemorate a grand tour of Canada made by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth of Great Britain in 1939, Crown Royal^s smooth, elegant style reflects its aristocratic origins and is considered the epitome of Canadian whisky. In addition to its sponsorship of the Crown Royal IROC Series, the brand also sponsors Team Crown Royal, a professional fishing team; The Crown Royal Comedy Soul Fest and a number of other major regional and national events. For more information on Crown Royal, visit www.crownroyal.com.

 

 

 

About Crown Royal:

 

 

 

Crown Royal is proudly owned by Diageo, the world^s leading premium drinks business with an outstanding collection of beverage alcohol brands across spirits, wines, and beer categories. These brands include: Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Smirnoff, J&B, Baileys, Cuervo, Tanqueray, Captain Morgan, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines.

 

 

Diageo is a global company, trading in more than 200 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (DGE). For more information about Diageo, its people, brands and performance, visit us at www.diageo.com.

 

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