Full Throttle

As sponsor of NHRAs Kenny Bernstein Budweiser has the longest running sponsorship agreement with a single team/driver surpassing the 28-year relationship STP had with Richard Petty last year.

That relationship will come to a close when Budweiser ends its sponsorship of Kenny Bernstein after the 2009 season. Anheuser-Busch made the announcement Monday, also saying 2009 will be the last year for Budweiser as the official beer sponsor of the NHRA.

The pundits and speculators all went into a tizzy-fit (including yours truly) when EU based InBev bought out The King of Beers last July.

This announcement should serve to reignite that debate and begs the question, what happens with Kasey Kahne’s Budweiser deal?

If memory serves Kahne’s deal is for three years so its safe for the time being. But what happens if the economy stays in the toilet, will Bud stay or will they go.

The glass-half-full side of this story is this cut by InBev may be one predicated on exposure vs dollars spent. The NHRA receives far less TV and print media exposure than NASCAR, bang for the buck still rules in the advertising world and the state of the economy only heightens that importance.

Based on that I’d say Kahne’s Bud deal is safe for now. But who the hell knows for sure. With the Gobment spending like a drunken sailor, and trust me I know how they spend, all bets are off.

IN OTHER SPONSORSHIP NEWS:

It seems Heluva Good, the food company, got a heluva good deal in signing on as title sponsor of Watkins Glen’s Sprint Cup race for 2009. The normal rate for such a deal is between $800,000 and $3 million but in a sign of the times, and the late nature of the deal, meant it has gone for a sum believed to be in the region of $200,000. An insider confirmed: “200k - that’s it.”

File this under: “If the 1,000 pound gorilla is hurting you know it’s bad!”

The Numerous Felons League (NFL) is looking at adding liquor and lottery sponsorships to their sponsorship portfolio. A change to the league’s regulations permitting both liquor and lottery sponsorships will be on the agenda at next weeks NFL owners meeting.