A News Conference will be held at 12:30 p.m. on Friday, October 11, in the Infield Media Center at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte, NC to officially welcome recently inducted NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly to NASCAR. Kelly will announce his new affiliation with a touted, BGN race organization and will detail his level of involvement. The owner of the race team will also be present. Kelly, a 4-time Super Bowl participant during his long and successful football career with the Buffalo Bills, will be available for one-on-one interviews and photo opportunities.(On Track Marketing PR)(10-8-2002)
UPDATE: rumor has it that this could be the new Frank Cicci team (see next story), another New Yorker, driver Mike McLaughlin is available and could be the driver.
UPDATE 2: been told Mike McLaughlin has not talked to this team but has some other things working and is still looking for a 2003 ride.(10-10-2002)
UPDATE 3: veteran NASCAR Busch Series team owner Frank Cicci announced that NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly has signed a partnership agreement with the team. The team will return to the Busch Series full-time in 2003. Kelly will help the team search for and promote sponsorships. Kelly has long been a NASCAR fan and grew up watching racing as a youngster. Cicci has been a Busch Series team owner for the past 17 seasons and holds a series record of 702 starts. These days you have to do things a little differently, said Cicci. We have brought Jim Kelly in as a partner to offer his services to a sponsor and help promote their product. The sponsors are out there. Our team is a marketing team.
This had been an ongoing process for Kelly Enterprises, said Kelly. Ever since I was a little boy, Ive thought about racing. Everything that Ive always done, Ive given it 100 percent, and this will be the same. I wanted to find a way to get into racing. I believe this will be a win-win situation for everybody. The team recently purchased a 10,000-square-foot shop in the Mooresville, N.C., area that was the former shop for Blaise Alexander. No driver has yet been named for the team.(LMS Site)(10-11-2002)
