Shell moving sponsorship to Penske for 2011 season

Shell/Pennzoil will leave Richard Childress Racing and driver Kevin Harvick at the end of the season and will sponsor a car at Penske Racing beginning in 2011.

In a statement release on Wednesday by Shell Oil Company, the agreement with Penske Corporation is a "multi-year cross business alliance starting in the 2011 racing season.

Busch

"The new alliance allows Shell and Pennzoil to expand their motorsports presence as it includes a primary sponsorship" with 2004 Cup Series champion Kurt Busch and the No. 22 Dodge.

The agreement also includes associate sponsorships with Penske's IndyCar Series drivers Helio Castroneves, Will Power and Ryan Briscoe.

Busch's contract with Penske runs out at the end of this year but team owner Roger Penske has said he planned to pick up the option and just needed to negotiate terms with Busch.

Busch's current sponsor, Miller Lite, will move to Brad Keselowski, whose car does not have sponsor logos but gets support from Verizon, which cannot be on the hood of a Sprint Cup car because of Sprint's sponsorship of the series.

Keselowski will drive the No. 2 Dodge. "Brad is one of the hottest young drivers in NASCAR and we're thrilled to welcome him to the Miller Lite Racing family," said Andy England, chief marketing officer at MillerCoors. "Rarely in this sport are you presented with the opportunity to build a relationship with a top-tier driver at the start of his career. We look forward to 'tasting greatness' with Brad and Penske Racing in the years ahead."

Shell/Pennzoil has been with Harvick since 2007; Busch has been the Miller Lite driver since 2006.

With Shell/Pennzoil as a sponsor, Mobil, sponsor of Penske Cup driver Sam Hornish Jr., is going away because Mobil and Shell are competitors.

"ExxonMobil will discontinue its sponsorship relationship with Penske Racing after the 2010 season," the company said in a release. "It has been a long and successful relationship, and we wish the Penske team continued success on the track."

The departure of Shell/Pennzoil from RCR leaves that organization, as well as Harvick, looking for a sponsor. Harvick's contract expires at the end of this year.

"Shell and Pennzoil have been great partners with Richard Childress Racing since our first race together, when Kevin Harvick and the No. 29 team won the Daytona 500 in 2007," Childress said in a release issued Wednesday. "I'm disappointed that our partnership will conclude at the end of the year but understand some of the reasons that went into their business decision.

"The No. 29 team has had only two primary sponsors since it began in 2001 but the No. 3 has played a significant role at RCR for decades. We feel strongly that the third chapter of the No. 29 team's partnership history will be a successful one."

As part of the alliance, Pennzoil will become the "Official Motor Oil" of Penske Racing, which includes all of its entries in the Cup and Nationwide series as well as the IndyCar Series.

For Pennzoil, returning to Penske is a homecoming of sorts as Pennzoil first aligned with Penske as part of its IndyCar teams in 1983 and won the 1984 and 1988 Indianapolis 500 with driver Rick Mears. In addition, Kurt Busch won his Cup Series championship driving a Pennzoil-supported car for Jack Roush.

Mobil, while ending its sponsorship with Penske Racing, will remain the "Official Motor Oil" of NASCAR.

Related:
• Penske still committed to Hornish, third car in '11