Jack Roush and his organization are becoming adept at signing big-name sponsors. Credit: Autostock

Squeezing the nickel

Roush Racing able to keep the money flowing thoughout empire

For someone with a lot of mouths to feed, Jack Roush keeps coming up with suitable "meals" for his five Nextel Cup teams each year. Add to that a pair of Busch Series teams and two Craftsman Truck Series squads, and you've got yourself a pretty hefty sponsorship bill.

	Credit: Autostock
	Inside the Numbers Roush Racing at a glance Starts 1,886 Cup titles 2 Wins 89 Top-5s 463 Top-10s 799 Poles 56 Laps Led 24,703 Avg. Start 18.4 Avg. Finish 16.1

Is there anyone in the series -- or the top three series, for that matter -- who is better at starting a company out slowly and then bringing them into the big time than Roush?

Earlier this week, Roush and 3M Company announced that 3M will be the primary sponsor for the No. 06 Ford Fusion entry driven by Todd Kluever in the 2006 Busch Series. The season-opening 300-miler at Daytona International Speedway will mark the Busch Series debut for Kluever, the new No. 06 team under the leadership of crew chief Mike Kelley and 3M.

But wait, there's more.

3M will also be the primary sponsor for Todd Kluever's six planned Nextel Cup races in the No. 06 Ford. The company will also be an associate sponsor of Mark Martin's No. 6 AAA-sponsored car for the entire 2006 season.

"We previously had a relationship with 3M through Greg Biffle's Nextel Cup team and we are pleased they have decided to take a primary sponsorship role with Todd in the Busch Series," said Roush. "3M is an outstanding organization, and the support of a company of its caliber will help Todd achieve his full potential."

3M is solidly on board, as well.

"Everyone at 3M was thrilled with Roush Racing's success in 2005 and we're excited to expand our presence in NASCAR by sponsoring Todd Kluever in 2006," said Bob MacDonald, 3M Senior Vice President, Marketing. "For us, NASCAR represents an important platform for sharing and celebrating 3M innovation with millions of loyal race fans, customers and employees.

"3M is proud to align itself with the proven performance of the legendary Mark Martin and the new energy of rising star Todd Kluever," MacDonald added.

3M anticipates activating its sponsorship through a comprehensive marketing communications program on several levels throughout 2006, including customer hospitality, promotions and at-track marketing.

If you think back to the offseason last year, you might remember there was another first-year Busch Series driver who had Cup aspirations and a cadre of sponsors.

Carl Edwards, who wound up signing a sponsorship deal with Office Depot, very nearly won the Nextel Cup championship in the first year of that partnership.

Martin's involvement is a bonus for 3M, as the company will be part of what will be Martin's last full-time Cup season -- the Salute to You Tour II, as it were.

Companies like 3M -- recognized world leaders in their respective disciplines --are ever eager to find the perfect way to market their products and services. When you consider the sheer number of sponsors Roush Racing has, you begin to see why the team owner been so successful at luring the companies to his Concord, N.C. compound.

His roster boasts a marketable elder statesman (Martin), two young championship contenders (Edwards and Greg Biffle), the 2003 series champion (Matt Kenseth) and arguably the best free-agent signing in NASCAR (Jamie McMurray).

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All five Roush cars qualified for the Chase last year, and there's no reason not to expect that a similar number will make it in this year. Ten weeks of non-stop attention from the national and international media is a powerful inducement to sign on the bottom line.

The 3M deal for the associate spot on Martin's car is sort of neat when you think that AAA -- which ironically was the national motorsports governing body from the early part of the last century through 1955 -- was in a similar position to 3M last year.

As one of the many sponsors which showed up at one point or another on Edwards' car, AAA was able to step in for Martin's final season after Viagra's contract ran down at the end of 2005. Bridging the gap for that one year is vitally important, because Kluever will take over the No. 6 -- currently Roush's flagship car -- in 2007.

Whatever Roush and Miller and the rest of the sponsorship folks at Roush Racing are doing, the other teams in the paddock might want to check into it. With nine hungry teams to feed, Roush generates a lot just to keep moving.