Budweiser Shootout now the Budweiser Duel

UPDATE The conflicting beer sponsorships led to some awkward eligibility rules over the past few years. Chitwood says he is pursuing several leads for potential title sponsors for the Shootout, but Coors Light is not one of them. Budweiser's exclusivity with the Speedway precludes a rival beer maker from naming the season-opening exhibition race. NASCAR News Service

02/24/12 Budweiser and Daytona International Speedway announced the beer brand will take on an enhanced role in NASCAR's season opening festivities. Beginning with the 2013 season, Budweiser will become the official title sponsor of Speedweeks – the ten-day stretch of stock-car races from the Shootout to the Daytona 500. Budweiser also will secure entitlement of the Budweiser Duel at Daytona, two 150-mile qualifying races that determine the starting lineup for the Daytona 500. These enhancements to Budweiser's partnership with DIS will replace the brand's existing entitlement of the season-opening, non-points Shootout.

"Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway marks the official start of the NASCAR season, and the opportunity to expand our presence throughout the ten-day event puts Budweiser even more in the thick of it all," said Brad Brown, vice president of sports & entertainment marketing, Anheuser-Busch. "The Shootout has been an important element of our NASCAR program for 34 years, but this opportunity to enhance our partnership makes Budweiser even more relevant to our consumers as well as the fans of the Daytona 500."

As part of the sponsorship, Budweiser will also receive the presenting sponsorship of the Daytona 500 pre-race broadcast show. The brand will also receive increased access for consumer hospitality events, including naming rights to the 5th Turn hospitality area throughout Speedweeks. "Budweiser is the longest running active partner with Daytona International Speedway and we are incredibly excited to enter this new chapter with them in 2013," said Daytona International Speedway President Joie Chitwood. "The opportunities created by this enhanced partnership are compelling and our fans will benefit the most. The intensity and fun atmosphere that Budweiser brought to the Shootout for so many years will be taken up several notches as they assume a much broader role during Speedweeks and 'The Great American Race.' Daytona International Speedway