NRA becomes title sponsor of NASCAR race

Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe's Chevrolet, celebrates in Victory Lane by firing the commemorative Turnbull pistols after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on November 4, 2012 in Fort Worth, Texas. / John Harrelson/Getty Images for NASCAR

FORT WORTH, Texas The National Rifle Association is taking its relationship with racing to a new level as the title sponsor of a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

The deal with Texas Motor Speedway comes at a time when the NRA is involved in a renewed debate on gun violence in the wake of the December shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

"It's not about politics. It's about sports marketing," TMS president Eddie Gossage said Monday after the announcement of the one-year agreement with the NRA that includes a renewal option.

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The April 13 race at Texas, the first scheduled night race in the Cup Series this season, will be known as the NRA 500.

This is not the NRA's first title sponsorship in NASCAR. The group sponsored the second-tier Nationwide race last September at Atlanta, which like Texas is owned by Speedway Motorsports Inc.

"They saw it was obviously a very attractive sports marketing opportunity and seized it. That's what it's all about," Gossage said. "It's about putting on one of the great sporting events in America. I know in Atlanta last year they saluted a lot of the people that make America free. They are going to salute American freedoms and American families with this race. That's their plan so it seemed to be a good fit."

NASCAR said in a statement Monday that "race entitlement partnerships" are agreements directly between the track and the sponsor though NASCAR reserves the right to approve or disapprove those sponsorships.

"The race sponsor for Texas Motor Speedway's April event falls within the guidelines for approval for that event," NASCAR's statement said.

Wayne LaPierre, the NRA's executive vice president and CEO, expressed his excitement about the deal in a video message played during the track's media day. Gossage said LaPierre wasn't able to attend because of a scheduling conflict.

"The NRA 500 is the latest announcement in the long history of a growing partnership between the NRA, Speedway Motorsports and the NASCAR community," LaPierre said. "NRA members and NASCAR fans love their country and everything that is good and right about America. We salute our flag, volunteer in our churches and communities, cherish our families and we love racing. On April 13, we'll all come together at Texas Motor Speedway."

The sponsorship does seem like a natural. It's been a tradition at TMS that the winner of the Cup race gets to fire off a six-shooter in victory lane. And the winner of the pole gets a rifle as a prize.

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At the Cup season-opening Daytona 500, Michael Waltrip drove a Toyota with a paint scheme supporting a relief fund for victims of the Sandy Hook shootings.

The Newtown-emblazoned car of Swan Racing was unveiled by NASCAR chairman Brian France in a news conference at Daytona, part of a one-race arrangement for the team. France and his wife announced they would donate $50,000 to the Sandy Hook School Support Fund, which the NASCAR Foundation would match.

Sprint Cup rookie Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who won the NRA American Warrior 300 at Atlanta last September, has no issue with the NRA sponsoring NASCAR races.

" The NRA is our core fan base, and we all have guns, and all us racers love to go out and shoot. It's part of who we are," said Stenhouse, the only Cup driver at TMS media day. "Anytime you have a sponsor that embraces their market and who their core customers are, it's great for us.

"I was able to win the NRA race in Atlanta and those guys were great to work it," he said. "They take their stuff serious, they're concerned with the tragedies that we've had throughout the nation.

"I think they do a great job at working from their side to help things as well. I think it's a great partnership here at Texas."

Gossage said the NRA has been a generous supporter of Speedway Children's Charities, donating more than $500,000 to the charity's Texas chapter since 2000. He said the group has also had past sponsorship with signage at the track.

NRA officials first expressed interest last fall to Texas officials about sponsoring the track's spring race. The event previously had Samsung Mobile as a title sponsor since 2002, but the company didn't renew its contract after last April's race.

Without a title sponsor, Texas had been promoting next month's race as the Texas 500.

"We've had other (sponsor) offers but a lot of people wait and expect you to drop your price. That's not something we do. We're not going to be a discount speedway," said Gossage, not revealing specific details. "They were willing to meet the price. They afford us some great marketing opportunities as well with their membership to reach out to them and try to bring their members to attend the race here."

Gossage said TMS and the NRA reach similar audiences and that he expects a lot of tickets will be bought by NRA members and people who support the group's position.

"Obviously we know the NRA well and I can tell you from just looking at the demographics, I can tell you from the social media that I've been sitting here monitoring since that announcement was made, it's probably 99 percent supportive. Some wildly supportive," he said. "The public, it doesn't seem to be they're going to have any issue with it, and I'm not sure why anybody would think they would.

"Like I said, know your demographic and we pride ourselves on being good at what we do," he said. "So we know what we're doing and who we're partnering with."

[wbg60]

If I were a driver for NASCAR I would be up in arms about the NRA'S support of ANY race. NASCAR has such a great following and has done so much to make this world a BETTER place for so many sick and under privileged children. Why would they jeopardize that by agreeing to this type of sponsorship. Is the money that important or are they as blind as Wayne LaPierre is stupid. I for one would refuse to drive in this event period, I have already decided NOT to watch it or care who wins.

[highlndr55]

Boy are you liberals upset! Sprint racing is watched by people of all ilks - white collar, blue collar, famous, not so famous. Why do you have to call people names when you disagree with them. The NRA's sponsorship is for a limited time. If it goes well, it could last longer. Do you hate Capitalism so much that you do not want people to pay taxes to pay for your bleeding heart programs?

[sieben13hwdi]

With NASCAR , they have a captive audience, a large group[ of rednecks

[lloydbest1]

Like two peas in a pod. I'm surprised this wasn't engineered long before now.

[coxt420]

This is the only nascar race I will never watch. The NRA is the reason. There political crap does not belong. Oh the sadness! And, I dislike Jimmie Johnson but after this photo I despise him. Shame on Nascar for getting into the political arena for a few bucks.

[tideferrariracing]

Terrific,the race is called the NRA 500 because 500 is the average monthly income of its die hard fans AND the average number of guns each NASCAR fan has at home in his TRAILER ! TIDE ferrari racing, palm beach, tom davis,jr.

[Yes_ABWH_Fan]

Is NRA an NPO?
If so, how is this sponsorship legal?
If they are "for Profit", I have the right to see their Tax and SEC filings.

[tideferrariracing]

Terrific,Half the rednecks in the stands are related. Most are charter members of the N.A.A.W.T. "National Assoc. for the advancement of WHITE TRASH." This not even real racing. NASCAR IS Killing REAL sports cars RACING BUYING ALMS & MERGING WITH IT'S OWN DUMBED DOWN KIT CAR SERIES NOT SO Grand Am for Daytona 24 & Sebring 12 hour races. NASCAR Fans idea of a good sunday nite movie is running "ROOTS " backwards so it has a happy ending. TIDE ferrari racing,palm beach,rebecca cummings. Please help save the MIAMI Marine Stadium!

[SportsBear]

NRA is no place for NASCAR.

[oldoc44]

This is not unexpected since the general social strata and mentality of these groups is on the same level - right along with Texas; now to get Florida into the mix! Noisy cars, guns, brew and smokes all part of the paradigm of contumaciousness and crude behavior; why don't they get condom companies too? How 'bout a Trojan car?? We can't expect a lot from these folks and no reason to be PC about it, since they don't know what that means anyway! Crude, rude and tatooed, LOL.