WIX® Filters Announces NHRA Team Sponsorships

Tuesday, 22 February 2011

Sponsorship of Cruz Pedregon Racing and Tony Pedregon Racing mark WIX’s entrance into big-time drag racing

WIX Filters, a member of the Affinia Group family of brands, has announced season-long associate sponsorships of Cruz Pedregon Racing and Tony Pedregon Racing and the teams’ Nitro Funny Cars for the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, marking WIX’s first foray into NHRA Racing.

WIX Filters will join Cruz Pedregon Racing and Tony Pedregon Racing at the season-opening 51st annual Kragen O’Reilly Winternationals, Feb. 24-27, at Pomona, Calif.

"It's an honor to partner with a brand like WIX Filters that displays such a dedication to product quality and engineering,” said Cruz Pedregon, a two-time NHRA Funny Car champion. “I've prided myself for years by aligning myself with well-recognized companies and WIX Filters is right up there at the top."

In addition to the associate sponsorships of the two teams, WIX will be the lead sponsor of Tony Pedregon Racing at the second annual NHRA Four-Wide Nationals from April 14-17, at zMAX Dragway in Concord, N.C.

“WIX has a great reputation for high performance and technical superiority,” said Tony Pedregon, a two-time NHRA World Champion and second on the all-time win list with 43 career Funny Car wins. “We are excited to add a brand that brings a passionate commitment to excellence to our team.”

WIX Filters is a long-time supporter of racing at all levels, from dirt tracks to superspeedways, and cherishes the opportunity to begin building relationships on the ¼-mile this year.

“WIX is looking forward to supporting both Cruz Pedregon Racing and Tony Pedregon Racing in 2011, while getting to know and engaging with the fans that make NHRA such a popular and compelling sport,” said Jeff Blocher, vice president of sales at WIX Filters, a brand with a rich heritage as an advocate of racing and a regular in victory lane for more than 40 years at the highest levels in NASCAR®.

WIX is adding teams in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series and the Indy Racing League to its motorsports sponsorship program in 2011. These sponsorships are in addition to WIX’s team sponsorships of Stewart-Hass Racing, Richard Petty Motorsports, and Joe Gibbs Racing which all compete in the NASCAR Sprint® Cup Series.

Since 1939, Wix® Filters has been an innovator in filtration products. WIX designs, manufactures and distributes products for automotive, diesel, agricultural, industrial and specialty filter markets. Its product line includes oil, air, cabin interior, fuel, coolant, transmission and hydraulic filters for automobiles, trucks, off-road equipment and manufacturing applications. For more information, visit www.wixfilters.com.

Affinia Group Inc. is an innovative global leader in the design, manufacture, distribution and marketing of industrial grade products and services, including extensive offerings of aftermarket parts for automotive and heavy-duty vehicles. With approximately $1.8 billion in annual revenue, Affinia has operations in North and South America, Europe, and Asia.

Wray Ward