Walmart has been around for 50 years as of 2012 and they’re going to celebrate that fact with a run in the July race at Daytona with a 56-year-old icon in Bill Elliott. The retail giant is also going to expand their Race Time program, which brings NASCAR merchandise and events to Walmart stores in every market where the Sprint Cup races.
Elliott will be running a Turner Motorsports-prepared Chevrolet with the number 50 emblazoned on the side. He will also be making numerous personal appearances at Walmart stores across the country as a lead up to the big race in July.
Walmart will be offering their $99 Family Track Pack for 17 different races this season, starting with the Kobalt Tools 400 in Las Vegas March 11 and finishing up with the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte on Oct. 13. The Track Pack includes four discount race tickets, four hot dogs, four soft drinks and a race program. The reduced prices save fans more than $100 and are available at Walmart.com and Ticketmaster locations in select Walmart stores.
Walmart is also going to be giving fans even more accessibility to drivers and fan events with their Race Time 2012 program. There will be a larger selection of authentic NASCAR gear at stores as more than triple the number of companies from last year will be placing displays of merchandise in Walmart stores across the country. They are also doubling the number of driver appearances that will take place in Sprint Cup markets during race weekends.
When asked if this sponsorship deal will turn into some kind of sponsorship for his son Chase in the future Elliott took a more global view. “I don’t know that it is going to directly give anything to him, but it will hopefully open the door for Walmart to do more sponsorship in the future.”
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