Dupont has been Jeff Gordon's primary sponsor since he broke into the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 1992. Yet No24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet will have a radically different livelry for 2011 and for 3 years when for 22 races his primary sponsor will be the AARP Foundation’s Drive to End Hunger. It is believed that AARP that stands for "American Association of Retired Persons" - to pay an $12-$15 million range annually sposnorship for 22 races within the 3 years of the deal but the investment is expected to return many more dollars than it costs. AARP also can bring in corporate partners to buy some of the races, as long as those corporate partners don’t conflict with existing Hendrick sponsors. At the end of the day, it’s extremely likely that a substantial portion of the bill will actually be paid for by AARP’s corporate partners, and not the AARP Foundation itself. Moreover AARP Expects one of the most sophisticated and complex marketing programs in NASCAR history to be part of this deal: At the www.drivetoendhunger.org website there already is a text-to-donate program set up. The AARP will reach out to NASCAR fans, corporations and charitable organizations across multiple platforms, including presence at tracks.
Jo Ann Jenkins, president of the AARP Foundation announced:
“Our goal is not only to help the local food banks around the country so they can get food, so they can get food immediately, but for us to try and solve this issue on a broader basis so that folks don’t get in a position where they’re hungry.
Rick Hendrick commented:
"We didn't know when we started what kind of deal this was going to be -- I thought it might be an insurance company deal -- and as soon as we started the conversations, well, what we're trying to do is get the exposure to end hunger in this country. The more we talked and the more we brainstormed, it just exploded. I'm looking at it as a personal challenge, along with the race team."
Jeff Gordon added:
"It's pretty well known that we like giving back and getting behind these important causes. A little bit of it is just where I'm at in my career. I say that not because I'm getting old -- but I'm at that stage in my life and in my career where this type of sponsorship makes perfect sense.
Going to the AARP-sponsored car is big news for Gordon in another way -- in that DuPont, his long-time and almost dedicated sponsor, will be in a reduced role of sponsorship.
Rick Hendrick, who added that an announcement concerning DuPONT would be forthcoming very shortly commented.
"DuPont is not going away. You can fill in the blanks. The people that have been here -- Pepsi and DuPont -- they'll be back. And they'll be picking up the rest of it. They'll be on the cars with AARP -- AARP will be on the car with them, and they'll be on the car with AARP, the same way we do it now with associate sponsors."
Filling in the blanks means that Pepsi likely is going to be primary sponsor for two races next season and DuPont will be primary sponsor for the rest -- a total of 12 to 14 races, depending on who is on the car for two non-points events (the Sprint All-Star Race and the season-opening Budweiser Shootou.
