“We
believe that Tony’s passion to win and
relentless pursuit of excellence truly embody the essence of the Office
Depot brand and represent the commitments we make every single day to
help our customers be successful.”
Old Spice, a brand of Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble (P&G), is the
official antiperspirant/deodorant of NASCAR, and its longstanding
partnership with Stewart has helped Old Spice become the leader in its
category, as well as the male body wash category.
“We’ve really
valued our relationship with Tony and have been growing our partnership
for over nine years now,” said Alex Keith,
P&G Beauty, General Manager, North America Deodorants. “It’s
been a great program for Old Spice, and when he came to us with the
opportunity to make it even bigger, we knew it was the right move. We’re
absolutely thrilled to be on board.”
Also supporting Stewart’s Office Depot/Old
Spice effort in 2009 will be Chevrolet. The winner of 31 manufacturer’s
championships since coming to Sprint Cup in 1955, Chevrolet adds another
powerful team to its already potent lineup with the addition of
Stewart-Haas Racing.
Putting an exclamation point on Stewart’s new
ride for 2009 is that his red and black Office Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet
will carry the No. 14, made famous by the legendary A.J. Foyt.
“Tony and I have been friends for a long time,”
said Foyt, a winner of four Indianapolis 500s, the 1972 Daytona 500 and
the 1967 24 Hours of LeMans. “I think I first
met him when he was running Midgets. It was quite a while ago so I don’t
actually remember where and when. A few times he drove the Silver Crown
car I had with George Snider back in the mid-90s and I gave him his
first test in an Indy car in Phoenix (in 1995) and he ran pretty quick
as I recall.
“In addition to being quick, he’s
always told it how it is. I don’t think there’s
anyone better to carry the No. 14.”
Stewart has always admired what Foyt, currently an IRL IndyCar Series
owner, accomplished in a driving career that began in 1957 and spanned
such racing divisions as Indy car, NASCAR, USAC and sports car racing.
“A.J. has always been my hero and will always
be No. 1 on my hero list, with the best part being that we are really
good friends,” Stewart said. “We
obviously have a tremendous amount of respect for one another. I
remember him calling me after I won my first Cup championship in 2002
and I remember how much it meant to have him call that night and
congratulate me. We really do have similar pasts and carry a lot of
characteristics that are the same.
