Is Nextel’s future with NASCAR in jeopardy?
NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France: Q) Along with the potential name change with the merger, the rumors continue to pop up about the possible change of the sponsor. Has there been any discussions at all about Nextel/Sprint getting another company to buy out the contract?
BRIAN FRANCE: None whatsoever. They have got one of the great positions, the greatest position perhaps, in sports. They are obviously going through a change post their merger trying to get their company in a place that takes the most advantage with NASCAR. But they are focused on how to build around the sponsorship that Nextel brought into the merger. So none whatsoever. NASCAR
06/26/06 When word of the shake-up [Nextel personnel] first broke in April, Sprint executives insisted they were committed to continuing the NASCAR sponsorship, despite reports otherwise that the new powers were less than interested in NASCAR. Now, according to sources familiar with the situation, there are reports that Bank of America executives are interested in acquiring the title sponsorship to the Cup series. Winston Salem Journal
06/25/06 Sprint Nextel’s NASCAR Marketing Manager Mike Mooney has had his job eliminated by the telecommunications company in a round of job cuts. Mooney, along with Jill Gregory and Michael Robichaud, were the three most visible executives in Nextel’s NASCAR program when it began prior to the 2004 season. But with Gregory and Robichaud already gone and Mooney leaving as of next Friday, the key strategists behind Nextel’s initial foray into NASCAR are all gone. Speed Channel