A NASCAR spokesman said Wednesday it would be premature to name any company as a leading candidate to replace R.J. Reynolds Tobacco as title sponsor of the Winston Cup series. “In terms of finalizing any kind of a deal, I see another 60 days minimum,” said Jim Hunter, vice president of corporate communications for NASCAR. “There are serious conversations going on, but as far as putting a timetable on it, I don’t think we can.” Earlier this year RJR officials confirmed they had told NASCAR that if another title sponsor could be found the tobacco company would step aside despite the fact it last year signed a five-year contract extension. Discussion about a new sponsor will likely be part of the upcoming weekend at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, where RJR is also the sponsor of The Winston all-star race scheduled for Saturday night. McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Gillette and Visa are among the companies that have been named as possible candidates to replace RJR in the title sponsor’s role. Speculation that VISA has emerged as a front-runner has picked up in recent days, but Hunter said Wednesday that was not true. A Visa spokesperson declined to comment. Dean Bonham, president of The Bonham Group, a Denver-based sports-marketing agency, said he thinks NASCAR offers a potential sponsor on of the most attractive demographics in professional sports. “The NASCAR demographic is more diversified than many people realize,” Bohnam said. “It’s broad in terms of age, income and education, and its fans are much better educated and have a higher income than most people realize.”( ThatsRacin.com )(5-15-2003)
