General Mills Inc.announced its sponsorship of rising star Austin Dillon in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2014. Dillon, the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series champion, will drive the #3 Cheerios Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing in NASCARs elite series. To celebrate the news, Cheerios launched ‘Cheer the 3″ social media communities on Facebook and Twitter for fans to interact and receive unique content about Austin and the #3 race team throughout the 2014 season. ‘We are proud to support a proven champion in Austin Dillon, a driver who shares many of the same values as Cheerios’ said Gregg Dorazio, manager of Shopper Marketing and Motorsports at General Mills. ‘We have been an active sponsor in NASCAR for many years now and this is an exciting opportunity to be part of a historical moment in the sport.” Austin Dillon, grandson of car owner Richard Childress, will be competing in his first full season in NASCARs premiere series in 2014, building on an already impressive racing career. He became the youngest champion in Truck series history when he won the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship at 21 years, six months and 22 days. The 23-year-old driver won the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series Championship, becoming only the third driver in NASCAR history to win both the Nationwide and Camping World Truck championships. In addition to his championships, Dillon earned Rookie of the Year honors in both series. ‘Im thrilled to take this next step in my career and think its awesome to have the support of Cheerios, a cereal Ive eaten since I was a kid’ said Dillon. ‘After gaining experience in Truck and Nationwide Series competition, Im ready to take this next step and drive the #3 Cheerios Chevrolet against the best drivers in the world.” First entering NASCAR in 1997, General Mills has been an active sponsor of the sport for over 15 years working with elite drivers including Jeff Burton, Clint Bowyer, Bobby Labonte, Mark Martin and Johnny Benson.(Cheerios Racing) See images of the #3 Cheerios Chevy, see my #3 Team Schemes page .
