HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. – The DieHard brand, America
Terms of the multi-year sponsorship agreement were not disclosed, but the sponsorship includes a DieHard Starting Area that authentically integrates the DieHard brand with top fuel dragsters as they “start up.” This includes two DieHard “starting carts,” shaped like DieHard batteries, containing eight DieHard Platinum batteries. Each starting cart weighs 1,100 pounds and is 78 inches long by 65 inches wide by 40 inches tall. The starting carts are capable of starting 140 nitro methane-powered Top Fuel dragster and Funny Cars before needing to be recharged. The sponsorship also includes commercial inventory during NHRA eliminations broadcast on ESPN2 and sponsorship of the “DieHard Race Week Start-up” on NHRA.com each week.
Also, as Official Battery of Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), the DieHard brand will receive operational support from DSR at the NHRA events. DSR will build, design and maintain the DieHard starting carts for use by the NHRA race teams to start each Top Fuel and Funny Car Class.
“NHRA fans have a ‘do-it-yourself’ attitude, so this partnership is a great fit strategically,” said Guenther Trieb, president of Brands at Sears Holdings Corporation. “NHRA fans are more likely to have visited an auto parts store in the past year than fans of any other major sport. In addition, beyond their passion for NHRA, they are outdoor enthusiasts. Four of the outdoor activities preferred by NHRA fans – hunting, power boating, fishing and camping – require a battery,” Trieb added.
“With DieHard Platinum Batteries starting these 7,000 HP engines, we feel the NHRA is the ideal venue to showcase the legendary power and reserve capacity of DieHard batteries,” said George Kurkowski, DieHard brand manager
“We are extremely pleased to have DieHard batteries join the NHRA family of sponsors,” said Tony Driscoll, NHRA vice president of sales. “DieHard batteries began their relationship with NHRA at the start of this season as the primary sponsor on Matt Hagan’s Dodge Charger Funny Car and for one of the most trusted brands in the automotive industry to expand their footprint to the league level as the Official Battery of NHRA less than a year later is a tremendous endorsement of NHRA.”
The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series runs 23 races from February through November, reaching 33 of the top 50 DMAs in the United States
