[Racer Duck]

Jim Beam Bourbon Renews Race Sponsorship With Robby Gordon NASCAR Team For A Fifth Year

Jim Beam® Bourbon, the world’s No. 1-selling bourbon, announced today that it will continue its partnership with Robby Gordon Motorsports (RGM) as a primary sponsor of the No. 7 driven by team owner and veteran driver Robby Gordon during the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

"With so many teams merging or taking on investors, Robby Gordon represents a one-of-a-kind driver and owner in NASCAR’s top racing series. His tenacity and commitment shows he has the competitive spirit, that our customers value and respect," said Brian Gallagher, Motorsports Marketing Manager, Jim Beam. "We are proud to continue our support of Robby and his race team as they demonstrate true character and achieve success on the track."

Jim Beam will be the primary sponsor for 13 Sprint Cup Series races in 2009, and will serve as an associate sponsor for the remaining events. The deal marks the company’s fifth year of partnership with RGM, a relationship that began when Gordon created the team in 2005.

"Jim Beam has been with me since the beginning," said Gordon. "To have them back with us for a fifth straight year is exciting and a credit to everyone here at RGM. It’s challenging being one of the few single-car teams remaining and yet, we have shown we can still be competitive. With Jim Beam’s continued support for the No. 7 team, we can focus on improving our race program and build our way towards a successful 2009 season."

Jim Beam will utilize its sponsorship to reach race fans both on and off the track through a variety of racing related promotions, including the second annual Beam Bash, a concert featuring Grammy-nominated country music duo, Montgomery Gentry, scheduled to take place prior to the Daytona race weekend. Gordon will also support and serve as spokesperson for Beam Global Spirits & Wine reminding legal age consumers to drink responsibly throughout the year. Through its drink smart® responsibility platform, Beam Global educates consumers on how to make responsible decisions about alcohol and reminds them of these six basic principles: Respect Others, Obey the Law, Take Responsibility, Drink in Moderation, Be a Responsible Host and Drive Safe.

Robby Gordon finished the 2008 season in the top-35, which guarantees the No. 7 a starting spot in the first five races of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. The team scored three top-10 and seven top-20 finishes and displayed a solid performance at the superspeedway events, finishing second in restrictor-plate points.

Gordon, 39, a six-time off-road champion and owner/driver of Robby Gordon Motorsports started his own NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team in 2005 after spending three seasons driving for Richard Childress Racing. Gordon, a versatile driver has competed in a variety of series including NASCAR Sprint Cup, NASCAR Nationwide Series, Indy Cars, SCORE International Off-Road, sports cars and the prestigious Dakar Series. He swept both 2003 road course races in NASCAR’s top series and is a three-time off-road Baja 500 and three-time Baja 1000 winner. In addition, in 2007 Gordon became the first American in history to win a stage in the Dakar Rally, a grueling two-week off-road adventure.


Jim Beam Racing 2009 Primary NASCAR Sprint Cup Events
Date Venue
2/15/09 Daytona
2/22/09 California
3/1/09 Las Vegas
4/5/09 Texas
4/26/09 Talladega
5/16/09 All-Star, Charlotte
5/24/09 Charlotte
6/14/09 Michigan
7/11/09 Chicago
9/6/09 Atlanta
9/12/09 Richmond
11/15/09 Phoenix
11/22/09 Homestead-Miami

Source: Paddock Talk

[disco stu]

Great news that a significant sponsor is renewing their commitment in this particularly financially challenging climate.

However, one aspect of this deal does puzzle me though.

I don't understand why Jim Beam would sponsor the No. 7 car.

For me, the number 7 is very closely linked with (what I would assume to be) their arch-rivals Jack Daniel's.

Clint has been circulating for some time with the number 7 (albeit "zero seven") on a very well branded car, plus the number is an integral part of the "Jack Daniel's Old No. 7 Brand" brand.

I would've thought that the marketing folks in Jim beam would have a huge issue with this. And, indeed, so would the JD marketing team!

Are JB and JD owned by the same company?

Maybe I've got it wrong and they're not actually competitors in the liquor industry.

[BiscuitMan]

Originally Posted by disco stu

I don't understand why Jim Beam would sponsor the No. 7 car.

For me, the number 7 is very closely linked with (what I would assume to be) their arch-rivals Jack Daniel's.

Clint has been circulating for some time with the number 7 (albeit "zero seven") on a very well branded car, plus the number is an integral part of the "Jack Daniel's Old No. 7 Brand" brand.

I would've thought that the marketing folks in Jim beam would have a huge issue with this. And, indeed, so would the JD marketing team!

Are JB and JD owned by the same company?

Maybe I've got it wrong and they're not actually competitors in the liquor industry.

Wow! There's something with this number seven. The "7" seems to be associated with the major whiskey and bourbon makers: Jack Daniel's Old No. 7 Tennessee sippin' whiskey; Seagrams 7 whiskey; and Jim Beam bourbon has had "7" generations of leadership. Amazing.

So, Jim Beam evidently has a "reason" to sponsor the No. "7" car.

[Racer Duck]

They also sponsor a V8 Supercar team (2 cars), #17 & #18



it doesn't appear that the number is a really big thing, though they want a "7" in it somewhere...

[Quality88]

I don't know how Robby landed them again... he must be even more buisness savy then he has shown. I wish my brand was on more competitive car. I also wish they would do a different scheme. Make the cars colors match the bottles for pete's sake!

[thunderfoot]

Originally Posted by Quality88

I don't know how Robby landed them again... he must be even more buisness savy then he has shown. I wish my brand was on more competitive car. I also wish they would do a different scheme. Make the cars colors match the bottles for pete's sake!

I'm glad to see an independant get good backing. Even though I dont think Robby is a good shoe. Ya gotta give credit where credit is due. He can do business where others seem to have failed. Now if he can only run as good as it looks.

[thunderfoot]

Originally Posted by Racer Duck

They also sponsor a V8 Supercar team (2 cars), #17 & #18



it doesn't appear that the number is a really big thing, though they want a "7" in it somewhere...

Something you forgot to mention RD. That be an Australian series. And its also an Aussie Ford. A very good looking Ford at that. The only problem is the steering wheel's on the wrong side!

[Racer Duck]

Originally Posted by thunderfoot

Something you forgot to mention RD. That be an Australian series. And its also an Aussie Ford. A very good looking Ford at that. The only problem is the steering wheel's on the wrong side!

I didn't forget. there's no other series in the world called "V8 Supercars" except the Australian one.

And, yes it's a FORD. Don't care whether you call it Aussie or not, it's still got the blue oval on the hood.

Finally, they put the steering wheel on the "other" side because some bozo thought the car number had to be on the left side of the windshield!

[disco stu]

Actually, for some of us, it's the NASCAR cars that have the steering wheel on the wrong side!!!

[thunderfoot]

Originally Posted by Racer Duck

I didn't forget. there's no other series in the world called "V8 Supercars" except the Australian one.

And, yes it's a FORD. Don't care whether you call it Aussie or not, it's still got the blue oval on the hood.

Finally, they put the steering wheel on the "other" side because some bozo thought the car number had to be on the left side of the windshield!

I wonder how the company is fairing down under. First time I rode in one I thought I would die cause the driver pulled out on the wrong side of the road. Of course I had all kinds of Aussie alcohol in me. Damn good hooch too as I recall. I remember thinking how do you shift with the other hand? At least the padals were in the right order. They all had brush guards on their cars. I thought "How strange". Turns out they call them "Roo bars". Quite stylish too. I guess a kangaroo is like the equivilent to hitting a deer on the road and they got tired of fixing their cars.