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"We have observed Sunoco's commitment to excellence and their quality and their passion for racing, and we feel like that they're the perfect fit in the coming years," NASCAR president Mike Helton said.
Helton said Friday at Michigan International Speedway that he doesn't expect any problems as teams switch from Unocal to Sunoco. Sunoco already distributes racing fuel to more than 400 tracks across the country and supplies about 80 percent of the fuel to NASCAR's Dodge Weekly Racing Series.
"I think there's a very tiny gap there because of Sunoco's involvement in racing fuel, and the confidence that the competitors across NASCAR have in it," Helton said.
Helton said NASCAR began testing Sunoco fuel at the NASCAR research and development center in Concord, N.C. as soon as the deal was signed. The octane level, which is currently 110, will not be that much different, Helton said.
"There's fuel that Sunoco currently has that's very similar, we feel like, to Unocal's fuel that we're accustomed to in the national series," Helton said. "The testing started immediately. We're doing that right now. As soon as we signed the deal, the next step was to get it out there from our R&D center to the garages and shops across the national series."
Bob Owens, Sunoco's senior vice president for marketing, said he is "extremely confident" his company can meet whatever expectations NASCAR has for its gasoline. Sunoco, which is headquartered in Philadelphia, has a plant in Marcus Hook, Pa. that exclusively produces racing gasoline.
"The plant has the capability to make product across a wide spectrum, both unleaded and leaded product," Owens said. "We make a leaded product with an octane as high as 112 and we make unleaded racing gasoline up to 100 octane."
That plant worked with some major engine manufacturers to make sure it had the right fuel for the engines.
"We were able to deliver that absolute, consistent quality to the engine manufacturers," Owens said, "and we will deliver that same consistent quality to the teams and drivers in NASCAR."
One thing that won't change is the distribution and supply to the teams in the three series. Gasoline will continue to be provided free of charge at the racetrack.
Interestingly, Sunoco distributes its commercial products mainly in the Northeast and Midwest -- away from NASCAR's traditional Southeastern base.
"We are a regional marketer," Owens said. "Our strength is in the Northeast and the Midwest. We recently re-entered the Southeast, and we don't have plans to expand beyond that."
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