NASCAR close to announcing new Busch sponsor

UPDATE Nationwide has reached an agreement to be the title sponsor of NASCAR's No. 2 series beginning in ‘08, sources told SportsBusiness Journal, replacing Anheuser-Busch. Terms of the deal were not available. The Columbus, Ohio-based insurance company, which ranked No. 104 on the ‘06 Fortune 500 list, submitted an offer to NASCAR last Thursday and finalized an agreement yesterday.

10/02/07 Michael Smith of SportsBusiness Journal reports this morning that Nationwide Insurance is moving into the final stages of negotiations to title sponsor NASCAR’s No. 2 series. Nationwide and Subway submitted a final offer last Thursday. Nationwide’s talks with NASCAR continued to progress over the weekend and a contract proposal is believed to be in the legal pipeline at Nationwide.