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NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
CUP: Tornados Foods To Sponsor Newman
Ryan Newman’s car will carry Tornados colors for five races in each of the next two seasons...
Tom Jensen  |  Posted November 14, 2009   Avondale, AZ
The No. 39 Chevrolet driven by Ryan Newman will carry a new sponsor, tortilla product Tornados, in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Races in 2010. (Photo: Tom Jensen)
Ryan Newman is currently in ninth position in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points standings. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Stewart-Haas Racing has inked another new sponsor, signing tortilla product Tornados as primary sponsor of Ryan Newman's No. 39 Chevrolet for five races each in the 2010 and 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup seasons.

Tornados are microwavable tortillas stuffed with meats, sauces and cheeses and rolled in batter. They are one of about 200 food products made by Dinuba, Calif.-based Ruiz Foods.

In addition to being a primary on Newman’s car Tornados also will serve as an associate sponsor on both the No. 39 and teammate Tony Stewart’s No. 14 Chevrolet through 2011, the team announced on Saturday at Phoenix International Raceway.

“NASCAR is the ideal platform for our Tornados brand to extend its reach to the consumer,” said Bryce Ruiz, president and CEO of Ruiz Foods. “Tornados have been available on roller grills in convenience stores for more than five years, but now they can also be found in the frozen food section of grocery stores nationwide.”

With the addition of Tornados and Friday’s announcement that the U.S. Army will return as a primary sponsor as well next year, SHR now has 20 races sold on the No. 39 next year. Haas Automation will also return as a primary sponsor next year, with the exact number of races to be determined.

SHR has enjoyed tremendous success attracting new sponsors at a time when dollars have been hard to come by in the NASCAR Sprint Cup garage. Old Spice, Burger King and now Tornados are among the sponsors the team has brought into the Sprint Cup Series in the last two seasons, as well as signing Office Depot and the Army from other teams.

Asked the reason for the team’s success at signing sponsors, team co-owner Tony Stewart joked, “It’s Ryan’s and mine charming personalities, of course.”

Then getting more serious on the subject, Stewart added, “I honestly don’t know. I think a lot of it is the fact that this is a time where you don’t see a lot of new groups coming into the sport. And I think when we made the decision to start this venture last year and Ryan came on board, I think everyone kind of rallied around that. I think that’s what attracted a lot of these corporations to be part of our family. We were looked at from Day 1 as the underdogs, and I think everybody can see how hard we’re working at it and the commitment we have. And people have wanted to join us because of it.”

Company CEO Ruiz likened NASCAR races to Super Bowls. “There’s a big crowd (every race) that we can rally our customers, our consumers in that market,” Ruiz said. “And Stewart-Haas? Winners. I think our family, our brands, we believe in them. And we believe we’re winners, and leaders in the marketplace. And I think it’s important that we associate with similar-type folks. … Exciting just to bring the two together.”

The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEEDtv.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or Speed Channel

Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief for SPEEDtv.com, the former Executive Editor of NASCAR Scene and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. He is the author of ?Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of SPEED,? and has appeared on television and radio shows to discuss NASCAR racing. Jensen is the past President of the National Motorsports Press Association. Jensen is the 1997 National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year and has won numerous national and state awards for news reporting, columns and feature writing. The Answer Man is back at SPEEDtv.com. Tom Jensen answers your questions during every race week and looks forward to hearing from you - please e-mail it to



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