Talks ongoing, optimism on deal

There’s still no deal between NASCAR and its current top series title sponsor beyond 2018, but the latest reports suggest there’s reason to think a deal can get done.

The biggest question facing NASCAR this year is how the sport will rise or fall now that Dale Earnhardt Jr. has called it quits. But a close second is whether or not Monster Energy is going to stick around past this year as sponsor of the NASCAR Cup Series, and there might be reason to think that one will be answered soon.

SportsBusiness Daily reports that Monster Energy is still mulling its options but that there is optimism about a renewal. That would keep the beverage brand as the Cup Series sponsor for two more seasons, through 2020.

Not only do some analysts believe a deal is on the way, but SBD cites sources with knowledge of the negotiations saying that there is a belief a renewal is likely.

Several people close to the deal have recently shown an increasing, but not unanimous, sense of optimism around NASCAR’s chances of a renewal.

If Monster decides to bail on the sport after just two seasons, it could be anything from a minor headache to a serious black eye. For starters, there is the bad public perception that a company didn’t want to give NASCAR more than two seasons after the last title sponsor switch, which came just last year after Sprint left the sport.

On top of that, NASCAR has let Monster Energy have so much time to make up its mind — the original deadline for this decision was last fall — that it will less time to find a replacement for next year should that become necessary. On a personal level, we just got used to calling it the Monster Energy NASCAR Series instead of the Sprint Cup Series, so let’s hope there’s no change coming for at least a few more years.