Roush Racing driver Carl Edwards will compete for championships in two of NASCAR’s national touring series this season. In addition to a full, 36-race Nextel Cup season in owner Jack Roush’s #99 Ford Taurus, Edwards will also run the 35-race Busch Series schedule in Roush’s #60 Charter Communications Ford. Roush plans to announce a sponsorship program [Office Depot?] for Edwards’ Cup program next week, a team spokesman said.(NASCAR.com)(1-7-2005)
UPDATE – #99 Has a Sponsor: On Tuesday, January 11, 2005 in Daytona Beach, FL at Daytona International Raceway, Roush Racing will make an announcement regarding a new primary sponsor for the #99 Roush Racing Ford in 2005. The announcement will be made following the completion of Cup practice on Tuesday afternoon at approximately 5:20pm/et in the media center. There will also be an unveiling of the new paint scheme.(Roush Racing PR)….Office Depot?(1-8-2005)
UPDATE 2: Office Depot, one of the world’s leading resellers of office products and services, and Roush Racing announced today that Office Depot will sponsor Roush Racing’s #99 Office Depot Ford Taurus driven by Carl Edwards in the 2005 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race season. The sponsorship comes on the heels of Office Depot’s new multi-year agreement with NASCAR to become the sport’s first-ever Official Office Products Partner. Beginning with the Daytona 500 in February, Office Depot will be the primary sponsor of Roush Racing’s #99 Office Depot Ford Taurus for a minimum of eight races in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series and an associate sponsor for the remaining races in the season. The Office Depot paint scheme, unveiled today during the first day of testing at Daytona International Speedway, will be featured on the #99 Office Depot Ford Taurus for the Daytona, Darlington, Chicago, California, Atlanta, Homestead, Texas and Bristol races. Just last week, Office Depot introduced its new multi-year agreement with NASCAR as the company’s primary national sponsorship platform. The relationship with NASCAR is also a central component of Office Depot’s new Taking Care of Business brand positioning and advertising campaign. Office Depot will link its entry into the 2005 NEXTEL series and its alliance with NASCAR through aggressive marketing efforts on the local and national level, leveraging the association with NASCAR to reach out to its core audience of business customers. Office Depot’s NASCAR agreement includes category exclusivity in NASCAR’s Nextel Cup, Busch and Craftsman Truck series. Activation plans include a large-scale national promotion, advertising campaign, merchandising, signage and sales events. Further, Office Depot will utilize the proprietary tagline “Where NASCAR Stops for Office Products” in the company’s more than 900 retail stores and online. In addition, Office Depot plans to launch a national advertising campaign featuring Carl Edwards and the No. 99 Office Depot Ford Taurus. The company will also support an upcoming NASCAR diversity initiative, as NASCAR is the fastest-growing sport among African-Americans and Hispanics, according to independent research.(Roush Racing PR/Site), more about Office Depot at officedepot.com, see an image of the car at the Roush Racing site or on my #99 Team Schemes page..(1-11-2005)
