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©1999 SpeedCenter Publishing John Della Penna announced that Budweiser will end its five-year sponsorship of Della Penna Motorsportsat the conclusion of 1999. "We have had a great relationship with Budweiser since 1995 and Richie Hearn and I respect that recentdecision," Della Penna said. "We already have several positive leads to secure a new primary sponsor." "This will not affect how we do business. Della Penna Motorsports will be a contender in the 2000 FedEx Championship Series with Richie Hearn returning for his seventh season with the team. I have already ordered Reynards for next year with Toyota power and Firestone tires. We have Ziff-Davis on board asa major associate sponsor as well as a number of other sponsors. For the first time since moving to CART(from the Toyota Atlantics Championship Series), we will have an early start for the next season." Budweiser began its sponsorship with Della Penna Motorsports in 1995 as an associate sponsor. The companycontinued its support throughout the years and became primary sponsor in 1998. Della Penna moved to Toyota power in 1999, becoming the Toyota/TRD development team. Jim Aust of TRD confirms that this status will continue in 2000: "We look forward to continuing our relationship with Della Penna Motorsports and anticipate that they and Toyota will achieve great successin the future." The Budweiser announcement comes only a few days after the CART/IRL merger talks effectively came toan unsuccessful end. Earlier this season, Valvoline announced their departure from team sponsorship in CART.
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