USA: Budweiser has extended its contract with Kenny and Brandon Bernstein

Budweiser, the leader in the U.S. premium beer category, announced on January 25 it has extended its contract with Kenny and Brandon Bernstein of the Budweiser King Racing team through 2009. This 30-year partnership eclipses Richard Petty’s 29-year sponsorship by Scientifically Treated Petroleum (STP), to become the longest consecutive major team sponsorship in motorsports history.

The relationship was originally sealed in 1980 with the sponsorship of Kenny’s Funny Car, which became known as the Budweiser King Funny Car. Anheuser-Busch then further capitalized on the growing popularity of National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) drag racing by establishing the Budweiser Shootout in 1982, a special race-within-a-race bonus event that has grown into an annual affair with a purse of more than $147,000. The Budweiser Shootout awards the eight quickest Top Fuel drivers in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series and offers $5,000 to the No. 1 qualifier in the Top Fuel racing series, in each of the 23 races.

“Kenny and Brandon have been outstanding ambassadors for Budweiser and professional drag racing for more than 25 years,” said Tony Ponturo, vice president, global media and sports marketing, Anheuser-Busch, Inc. “Our longstanding and successful history with the team, as well as our status as the ‘Official Beer of the NHRA’ for more than 20 years, has allowed us to reach a diverse range of adult racing fans, and has been instrumental in establishing Budweiser as a leader in all forms of motorsports.”

Kenny and Brandon Bernstein of the Budweiser King Racing Team enjoyed individual successes throughout their careers, but also made history as a duo in 2001 at “The Strip” at Las Vegas Motor Speedway when they became the first father/son duo in the NHRA’s 50-year history to win at the same event. They repeated this feat at the Lucas Oil Products Nationals in Chicago later that same year. Brandon finished seventh in the 2005 NHRA POWERade Top Fuel point standings, winning two events – in St. Louis and Seattle – and capturing two No. 1 qualifying spots.

In 2003, Kenny passed the Budweiser/Lucas Oil dragster keys to Brandon, who later went on to capture his first Top Fuel National event trophy at Firebird International Raceway in Phoenix, Ariz., the same track where Kenny won his first Top Fuel event in 1991.

“We are thrilled with this four-year extension, and are proud of our unprecedented water mark for the longest consecutive partnership in all of motorsports,” said Kenny Bernstein. “Our 30-year tenure with Budweiser says a lot for the sport of drag racing, and we are grateful for the contributions they have made to our sport.”

The 30-year Budweiser-Bernstein partnership has seen everything from fashioning the Budweiser/Lucas Oil dragster with a paint scheme highlighting Anheuser-Busch’s commitment to fresh beer, to it being featured in a popular Budweiser commercial aboard the deck of the U.S.S. Saratoga off the Coast of Corpus Christi, Texas. The Budweiser Clydesdales have made appearances at Budweiser Shootout Fan Fests, and when Kenny announced his retirement in 2001 Budweiser honored him with the “Forever Red …A Run to Remember” farewell tour the following year. This included featuring a specially-designed paint scheme and commemorative logo on Kenny’s Budweiser/Lucas Oil dragster and providing uniforms and helmets adorned with the “Forever Red …A Run to Remember” tagline. It was also supported by a full line of retail and point-of-sale materials, and featured in a wide variety of media advertising.

Based in St. Louis, Anheuser Busch is the leading American brewer holding 50 percent of the U.S. beer market. The company brews the world’s largest-selling beers, Budweiser and Bud Light. Anheuser Busch also holds a 50 percent share in Grupo Modelo, Mexico’s leading brewer, and a 27 percent share in Tsingtao, the No. 1 brewer in China. The company is one of the largest theme park operators in the United States, is a major manufacturer of aluminum cans and is America’s top recycler of aluminum cans. For more information, visit www.anheuser-busch.com.

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