WIX Sticks With Gibbs

GASTONIA, N.C.--WIX Filters has renewed its associate sponsorship of the NASCAR Winston Cup Series Champion Joe Gibbs Racing team.

The multi-year agreement provides for WIX Filters to remain the Official Filter of NASCAR’s top team and to be identified on the Joe Gibbs Racing team cars and the uniforms of 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Champion driver Bobby Labonte.

“I’ve always believed that the key to creating a championship team is to surround yourself with the very best people and the very best tools,” said Gibbs, an NFL Hall of Famer and three-time Super Bowl Champion. “With WIX, we get both. They’re great people with a great product. We’re proud to continue our affiliation and look forward to many more successes together,” he said.

“Continuing our association with Joe Gibbs, Bobby Labonte and the entire Gibbs team was an easy decision,” said Bruce R. Johnston, brand manager for Wix Filtration Products, a division of Dana Corp. “Consumers associate the WIX Filters brand with quality and performance. Those are the same attributes they associate with Joe and Bobby. It’s a perfect partnership,” he added.

“Our associations with NASCAR racing and the Gibbs team are integral parts of our brand awareness program for WIX Filters,” said Johnston. “Being the filter preferred by NASCAR’s top teams connects with consumers and speaks volumes about WIX filters’ durability and dependability.”

WIX Filters has been an associate sponsor of the Joe Gibbs Racing team since 1993. WIX oil and air filters are used in all of the team’s race cars, including those for drivers Labonte and 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Rookie of the Year Tony Stewart, as well as the Busch cars and Craftsman Trucks in the Joe Gibbs racing family.

The WIX-backed Gibbs team enjoyed its best season ever in 2000, capturing 10 race victories, four pole positions and the coveted Winston Cup title. Labonte’s championship was founded on four victories and 19 top-five finishes, while Stewart notched a series-leading six wins. The 10-year-old Huntersville, N.C.-based team owns victories in the famed Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400.

For more information, contact www.wixfilters.com.