Roger Penske’s victorious racing operation took the wraps off its new Shell 2011 liveries for both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and IZOD IndyCar Series in Las Vegas.Officials from Shell Oil Co. and Penske Corp. unveiled both the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger Sprint Cup car that Kurt Busch will drive next season and the No. 3 Shell V-Power-Pennzoil Ultra Dallara/Honda that three-time Indianapolis 500 champion Helio Castroneves will drive in the 2011 Indy 500. The cars were unveiled during a press conference at the Penske-Wynn Ferrari dealership at the Wynn Las Vegas.
Shell and Pennzoil will be the primary sponsorship of 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Busch’s Dodge, as well as associate sponsors promoting Shell V-Power and Pennzoil Ultra with IZOD IndyCar Series drivers Castroneves, Will Power and Ryan Briscoe.
Busch, who joined Penske in 2006, spent the past five seasons driving the No. 2 Penske Dodge with Miller Lite sponsorship, but next year will move to the 22 with Shell Pennzoil.
“I look forward to building on the success of our storied past at Penske Racing with our new sponsors at Shell and Pennzoil.
Castroneves said he was glad to be racing the car at Indianapolis and hinted Shell could step up its involvement later on.
“Right now, it’s Indy only, but I believe they’re going to be looking at the strongest markets and we might have some other opportunities. This is big, getting Shell back, and who knows what it might be down the road.”
The three-time 500 winner welcomed the opportunity to fly the Pennzoil colors at the Brickyard. “Rick Mears said if I have as much luck with Pennzoil as he did, I’ll be looking good. Shell and Pennzoil have such a great history in IndyCar racing and they have certainly had some special moments with Penske Racing at the Indy 500,” added Castroneves. “I hope we can create a little bit more history together this May at Indianapolis.”
Lisa Davis, President, Shell Lubricants, Americas, commented
“Shell has more than a half-century of motorsports expertise and alliances allowing our organization to bring quality fuels and lubricants technology from the track to the road. Strategic alliances are very important to our organization and the new relationship with a winning team like Penske provides us with additional opportunities to continue furthering our technological leadership and product development through the invaluable knowledge gained both on and off the track.”
Shell and Pennzoil will be the “Official Fuel and Motor Oil Supplier” to the Penske organization in the U.S. The relationship goes far beyond a typical sponsorship, however. Beginning in 2011, Penske will work with Shell and Pennzoil to embark on a technical alliance that will offer insights into motor oil and fuel technology.
The renewed alliance will provide Penske’s IndyCar and NASCAR teams with cutting edge Pennzoil Ultra racing oil technology for all their race cars. Additionally, this alliance will enable further product development for Shell and Pennzoil through knowledge gained surrounding fuels, lubricants and engine technologies. Like Shell and Pennzoil, Penske Corp. has a close relationship with Chrysler and Ferrari, both part of the Fiat Group.
team owner Roger Penske commented:
“Shell and Pennzoil are two established and winning brands and they will be strategic business providers for our Penske Automotive Group and Penske Truck Leasing businesses. This is a very important global relationship for our organization and we look forward to producing many victories for Shell and Pennzoil in NASCAR, in the IZOD IndyCar Series and across our businesses.”
