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* Gordon and Earnhardt Jr lead in Marketability: While the NASCAR Winston Cup Series has enjoyed increasing popularity over the last few seasons, only four-time Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. possess broad national commercial appeal, according to the results of a new survey by The Sports Business Daily, which show that Gordon and Earnhardt Jr. are by far the most marketable drivers in NASCAR. The rest of the top five, which includes Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart and Dale Jarrett, may be household names within the NASCAR community, but our survey suggests that they still lack national appeal outside of the sport. The Sports Business Daily surveyed close to 100 marketing, advertising and PR execs, sponsorship consultants, sports business journalists, NASCAR analysts and other experts over the past month. All were asked: "In your opinion, who are the five most marketable drivers in NASCAR?" Drivers were awarded points on a sliding scale - with five points given for a first-place vote down to one point for a fifth-place vote. The survey results for the top ten drivers are:
Gordon - whose corporate partners include DuPont, PepsiCo, Chevrolet, and FosterGrants - received 49 first-place votes and was listed on 98% of the ballots. A close second was Earnhardt Jr., who received the second-most first-place votes with 41, but was named on 99% of the ballots. Earnhardt Jr.'s partners include Budweiser, Drakkar Noir, Nabisco and Chevrolet. "Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are clearly laps ahead of their competition in terms of marketing appeal on Madison Avenue," said Abraham Madkour, Editor-in-Chief of The Sports Business Daily. "Gordon posseses a unique cross-over appeal and is a proven winner for corporate America, while Earnhardt Jr. delivers the rare combination of a rock-star image and a legendary family name." Rounding out the top five are: Johnson, who received three first-place votes and was named on 62% of the ballots; Stewart, who received two first-place votes and was named on 64% of the ballots; and Jarrett, who received one first-place vote and was named on 42% of the ballots.(Sports Business Daily - need sub to read)(10-24-2002)
Gordon - whose corporate partners include DuPont, PepsiCo, Chevrolet, and FosterGrants - received 49 first-place votes and was listed on 98% of the ballots. A close second was Earnhardt Jr., who received the second-most first-place votes with 41, but was named on 99% of the ballots. Earnhardt Jr.'s partners include Budweiser, Drakkar Noir, Nabisco and Chevrolet. "Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are clearly laps ahead of their competition in terms of marketing appeal on Madison Avenue," said Abraham Madkour, Editor-in-Chief of The Sports Business Daily. "Gordon posseses a unique cross-over appeal and is a proven winner for corporate America, while Earnhardt Jr. delivers the rare combination of a rock-star image and a legendary family name." Rounding out the top five are: Johnson, who received three first-place votes and was named on 62% of the ballots; Stewart, who received two first-place votes and was named on 64% of the ballots; and Jarrett, who received one first-place vote and was named on 42% of the ballots.(Sports Business Daily - need sub to read)(10-24-2002)
