Jeff Wackerlin
Assistant Editor
The 2005 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series season is right around the corner and here's our annual look at the new paint schemes and colors on deck for the coming year.
Mike Bliss: (Pictured) Bliss' Chevrolet has added some yellow color to it as Best Buy will join NetZero as co-sponsors of the No. 0 this year.
Joe Nemechek: (Pictured) For the 2005 season, Nemechek's ARMY Chevrolet will eliminate the gold burst that came from the star (Star will stay but will move behind the number) on the sides of the car. The added highlight is that the roof will now be solid gold with the white No. 01. New associate sponsor Centrix will be the primary sponsor of Nemechek in two races.
Martin Truex Jr: Truex, Jr. is scheduled to enter seven NEXTEL Cup Series races this season driving the Dale Earnhardt, Inc. No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet. The paint scheme will be red and will look similar to the car he drove at Atlanta in his first career start. The tentative schedule calls for Truex to enter both Daytona and Talladega races, Michigan, Indianapolis and Homestead. In 2006, Truex will step up to the Cup Series returning the No. 1 team to full-time competition for the first time since 2003.
Rusty Wallace: Wallace will kick of his "Last Call" tour driving a special black paint scheme in the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona. Wallace personally designed his standard Miller Lite paint scheme that he will race for the majority of the season. The new design will be the traditional blue color, but will feature silver lightning stripes that come from the front of the car. Wallace will also be behind the wheel of the Mobil Clean 7500 car at Las Vegas.
Kyle Busch (Pictured): Busch will shoot for Rookie-of-the-Year honors driving the No. 5 Kellogg's Chevrolet, which will take on a brand new look in 2005. CARQUEST Auto Parts, who sponsored Busch's part-time NEXTEL Cup effort in 2004, will return this season as primary sponsor of the No. 5 in five races. The black CARQUEST paint scheme will be seen at California (First race), Bristol (First race), Lowe's (First race), Kansas and Texas (Second race). Busch will also enter a Delphi sponsored car in the Texas Spring race.
Mark Martin (Pictured): Martin, who will be retiring from full-time NEXTEL Cup racing at the conclusion of the 2005 season, will start his "Salute to You" tour driving another Kraft paint scheme in the 2005 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona. The red, white and blue paint scheme will help showcase Kraftfoods.com and a new promotion where you can win free groceries for life. Martin will also drive three special paint schemes this season that will resemble cars of the past in his illustrious career. The first car will be a replica of Martin's Stroh's Light Ford at Las Vegas on March 13 with the second being the maroon and gold colors of Folgers at Michigan International Speedway on June 19. Finally, Martin will sport the Valvoline colors that will take after his 1992 (First season of the Valvoline sponsorship) car at California Speedway on September 4. From 1992 – 2000 Martin was seen driving various Valvoline/MaxLife paint schemes. His standard Viagra paint scheme will remain the same this season.
Dave Blaney (Pictured): Blaney will debut the black No. 07 Jack Daniels Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing at Daytona. Jack Daniels will be one of three distilled spirits sponsorships in the NEXTEL Cup Series in 2005.
Robby Gordon: Driving the No. 7 Gordon will return as a owner/driver this season with Jim Beam backing him in a red, white and black paint scheme for a designated number of races starting with the Daytona 500. Fruit of the Loom, which sponsored Gordon in the Busch Series last season, will also be on the No. 7 for a number of races. Confirmed events for Fruit of the Loom include Bristol (First race), Indianapolis and Lowe's Motor Speedway (All-Star and Coca-Cola 600). Gordon will also enter the Busch race at Daytona with Fruit of the Loom. The remaining sponsors to make up the full season should be announced in the upcoming month.
Dale Earnhardt Jr: Earnhardt Jr. will kick of the season returning in three different dated Bud Born on Date paint schemes at Daytona. He will also shoot for his fourth-straight Daytona Busch Series win driving a red, blue and yellow Oreo/Ritz themed car. Earnhardt's standard paint scheme will not change with the exception of blue replacing the black on the "E" stripe and on the outline of the numbers, letters on the car. Bass Pro Shops and Menards will join the No. 8 as associate sponsors. Junior will also race the blue Menards car in the Busch Series race in April at Talladega. Last season he finished second in this event driving the Taco Bell car.
Kasey Kahne: Kahne will start the season sporting a special paint scheme in the Bud Shootout at Daytona to celebrate the return of the Dodge Charger. Like last season, Kahne will race a Mountain Dew paint scheme, but this time at California in February. Kahne's standard UAW/Dodge Dealers paint scheme will not change in 2005. Stanley Tools will join the Evernham cars as an associate sponsor.
Scott Riggs (Pictured): Riggs will have a new look on his No. 10 Chevrolet in 2005. This year the "Lightning effect" on the No. 10 has been eliminated. The deck lid has been changed from red to blue, with the blue sweeping forward towards the front quarter panels and is still accented by light blue and red to stick with the colors of the Valvoline logo. Just like teammate Nemechek, Centrix will also be the primary sponsor of Riggs' No. 10 for two races.
Jason Leffler (Pictured): Starting this season Leffler will drive a third car for Joe Gibbs Racing with sponsorship from FedEx. He will kick off the first part of the season driving the purple and orange FedEx Express car (Which will be considered the standard paint scheme). Through the course of the season Leffler will also race a FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight and FedEx Kinko's paint scheme.
Ryan Newman (Pictured): Newman's standard No. 12 ALLTEL Dodge now has two swishes of light blue both starting right before the wheels and extending upwards. The rear quarter panel is now reserved for Sony HDTV and the deck lid for a straight shot of just SONY. Newman is also scheduled to race the Mobil 1 paint scheme at Chicago, New Hampshire (Second race), Pocono (Second race) and Atlanta (Second race). The No. 12 will carry the Mobil 1 Extended Performance colors at Las Vegas.
John Andretti: Andretti's paint scheme is schedule not to change. His Victory Brand/APlus ppc Racing Ford made its debut last year at Lowe's Motor Speedway in the Fall.
Michael Waltrip: No major changes are expected for Waltrip's standard paint scheme. He will take part in the Mother's Day special paint scheme program at Darlington.
Greg Biffle (Pictured): Biffle's No. 16 Ford will be sponsored by Post-It notes for nine races in 2005 starting at California. The other races that will feature the red, white and blue Post-It paint scheme are the first races at Atlanta (First race), Texas (First race), Darlington, Pocono (First race), Infineon, Chicago, Talladega (Second race) and Phoenix (Second race). Post-It will also join as an associate sponsor on the patriotic National Guard standard paint scheme.
Matt Kenseth (Pictured): Kenseth's standard yellow and black Dewalt Ford will have a minor design change this season. Leading a group of primary sponsors, Trex Decking and Railing Corp. will sponsor Kenseth at the 2005 Atlanta Spring race. The car will be black with a silver/gray front end that will streak towards the rear of the car. Trex will be present on the rear quarter-panels and on the hood. Dewalt will remain on the decklid. USG/Sheetrock, which sponsored Joe Nemechek last season, will be on Kenseth's No. 17 Ford for in 2005. The car, which looks similar to Nemechek's 2004 USG ride, will race at California (First race), Indianapolis and Atlanta in October. Finally, Carhartt will return as a sponsor of the No. 17 this season at Michigan in June and Lowe's Motor Speedway in October.
Bobby Labonte The black jagged stripping of Labonte's No. 18 Interstate Batteries Chevrolet is now extended into the rear quarter panels. The accent of red underneath the stripe is now no longer there.
Jeremy Mayfield: Just like his teammate Kahne, Mayfield will start the season driving a special paint scheme in the Bud Shootout at Daytona to celebrate the return of the Dodge Charger, but his car will be yellow and black. Mayfield's standard UAW/Dodge Dealers paint scheme will not change. He will also run the Miller High Life Dodge for Rusty Wallace in the Busch Series for 17 races.
Tony Stewart (Pictured): Stewart's Home Depot Chevrolet has lost its black and white stripes for the 2005 season and is sticking with solid orange. In the Busch Series, Stewart will commemorate James Dean's career with a special paint scheme on a Kevin Harvick owned Chevrolet at Indianapolis Raceway Park on August 6th, the 50th anniversary of Dean's death.
Ricky Rudd (Pictured): Rudd's new paint scheme for this season is an extreme makeover from his "Keep it Genuine" scheme he ran last season in selected races. This year the car will have a white firecracker/explosion effect that surrounds the famous gold No. 21 and extends around the body of the car. Ford Parts and Service has replaced the Motorcraft logo on the rear quarter panels. Expect to see Rudd drive a Rent-A-Center and Air Force scheme again this year.
Scott Wimmer: Wimmer's No. 22 Caterpillar Dodge paint scheme will not change in 2005.
Jeff Gordon: Look for Gordon to run more special paint schemes this season including a possible Star Wars/Pepsi paint scheme at Talladega in May. Pepsi, who usually sponsors Gordon in the Spring Talladega race, sponsored Gordon in the Busch Series and Star Wars Episode I was featured on the car at Lowe's Motor Speedway in 1999. The standard Dupont flame scheme on the No. 24 will remain unchanged.
Brian Vickers: Sponsor's GMAC and Ditech.com have switched places on Vickers' No. 25 this season, with GMAC moving to the hood and Ditech to the rear quarter-panels. Garnier Fructis will also join as a major associate sponsor in 2005 and will be the primary on a bright lime green paint scheme at Texas Motor Speedway (First race) and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Kevin Harvick (Pictured): GM Goodwrench will celebrate their 20th anniversary with Richard Childress Racing in NASCAR this season. Harvick will race several unique special paint schemes in 2005 to commemorate this achievement. For the Daytona 500 Harvick's No. 29 Chevrolet will carry a multi-colored paint scheme that is a combination of the different looks that GM Goodwrench has been a part of over the years. Harvick will continue the celebration with another scheme at Atlanta in March that resembles the car in which he captured his first Cup victory. The standard black and silver GM Goodwrench scheme will not change this year.
Jeff Burton (Pictured): This season Burton's car will lose the black Cingular "X" behind the No. 31 on the door panels. The black has moved to become a swish extending from the front quarter panels to the bottom of the No. 31 and through the back of the car. A light blue will now outline the black and the outside of the No. 31 for the AT&T; Wireless merger. The sponsor name on the rear quarter panels is also outlined in the blue and has lost the word "wireless" and has become just Cingular.
Bobby Hamilton Jr: No major changes are expected for the No. 32 in 2005. New associate sponsors could possibly join.
Boris Said (Pictured): Said will enter a minimum of 10 races during the season in the same CENTRIX Financial paint scheme that ran at Infineon Raceway and California Speedway last season.
Elliott Sadler: Sadler's colorful M&M;'s paint scheme will have minor changes in 2005, that will include the Green M&M; moving to the back of the car (replacing the Yellow M&M;) and Combos replacing Pedigree on the deck lid. The Yellow M&M; character will now be on the side opposite of the driver. Sadler will switch Masterfoods brands to the yellow and blue Pedigree car (which appears to have a Golden Retriever and Jack Russell Terrier featured on both sides) at California Speedway, Darlington Raceway, and at both races at Lowe's Motor Speedway. He will also promote the movie "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith" with a special M&M;'s car that will feature "The Dark Side" with the M&M;'s characters dressed up as Darth Vader and other members. Sadler will also spilt driving duties with his teammate Dale Jarrett in the red, white and blue No. 90 Citi Financial Ford in the Busch Series. Sadler, who will enter 11 Busch events, will make his first start at the historic Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez road course in Mexico on March 6.
Sterling Marlin: No changes are expected on Marlin's standard Coors Light paint scheme.
Casey Mears: Mears' No. 41 Target standard paint scheme will have no changes in 2005. He will run the Energizer Batteries paint scheme again this season and will help smokers "Kick the habit" with a bright green and white Nicorette nicotine gum scheme at Atlanta in March.
Jamie McMurray: McMurray will race five different Texaco/Havoline "Shine On" paint schemes in 2005, with the first coming at Texas on April 17. McMurray will also drive a Autism Society of America paint scheme at Bristol in April. The standard Havoline Dodge scheme will not change this season.
Jeff Green: This year Green will have Hamburger Helper and Bugles as the major sponsors on the rear quarter panels replacing Old El Paso and Pop Secret (Which will remain on the car.) Also the "Petty Blue" and yellow paint scheme will undergo a makeover with last year's yellow straight back stripes being replaced by swooshes which start on the hood with the Cheerios logo. Expect Green to run a bunch of special paint schemes again featuring some of General Mills' products.
Terry Labonte (Pictured): Labonte will be reunited with his original car number, No. 44, and Kellogg's Corn Flakes during his "Shifting Gears Lonestar Style" Tour for ten races per season in 2005 and 2006. The car will be the same colors in which he captured the 1996 championship with.
Kyle Petty: Where has the brawny man gone? Well for 2005 he is missing from the No 45. and the Brawny logo has been replaced by Georgia Pacific on the hood. Dixie also was replaced on the deck lid by the logo for GP's Plytanium. Petty will also take part in the Mother's Day paint scheme program at Darlington.
Jimmie Johnson: No major changes are expected for Johnson's standard paint scheme.
Ken Scharder: Schrader's Schwan's paint scheme will remain the same in 2005.
Hermie Sadler (Pictured): In December, Peak Fitness acquired the assets of the SCORE Motorsports NEXTEL Cup Team and announced it will sponsor Sadler starting this season. The No. 66 Ford will carry the Peak yellow and purple colors.
Travis Kvapil: About the only thing that will change on the Kodak car in 2005, with the exception of the Charger body style, will be the driver's name above the door. This year Kvapil will replace Brendan Gaughan and will race for the rookie title. Jasper Engines & Transmissions will return as the primary sponsor of the No. 77 for four races in 2005. The scheduled races for the Jasper car are: Texas (First race), Dover (First race), Chicago and Atlanta (Second race). Kvapil will also join teammates Wallace and Newman in the Mobil promotion at Las Vegas in the Mobil Clean 5000 Dodge.
Dale Jarrett: UPS has brightened things up by throwing orange and red into the mix for Dale Jarrett's 2005 standard paint scheme. Jarrett will celebrate Mother's Day at Darlington with a special paint scheme that will feature a childhood picture of Dale riding in his Dad's race car. Along with his teammate Sadler, Jarrett will have M&M;'s on his car to promote Star Wars Episode III. The No. 88 Ford will feature "The Good Side" with characters like R2-D2 and Princess Leia. Jarrett will run another movie paint scheme at Richmond in May for "Herbie: Fully Loaded." This is the same movie, which features Lindsay Lohan, Matt Dillon and Michael Keaton, that was filmed during the 2004 Pop Secret 500 weekend Sept. 3-5 at California Speedway. Finally, as mentioned earlier Jarrett will split driving duties with Sadler in the Busch Series in the No. 90 Ford. His first race will be at California Speedway in February.
Bill Elliott: Elliott announced last month that he will step into his retro 1985 Coors paint scheme for a one-race deal with Chip Ganassi Racing in next month's Budweiser Shootout at Daytona. This time he will race the No. 39 and the Dodge nameplate. Elliott will rejoin Evernham Motorsports and begin a four race schedule with Stanley Tools at California in February. Other events for the yellow and black Stanley car will be at Texas, Indianapolis and Charlotte (Second race). Elliott's No. 91 will switch to the red and black colors and sponsor AAPA Auto Value/Bumper to Bumper at Michigan in August and Texas in November.
Kurt Busch (Pictured): Busch's standard Sharpie Ford will be all black with white numbers in 2005, with Smirnoff Ice joining the car on the decklid and hood. Busch will also drive the blue and yellow Irwin Tools, black and silver Smirnoff Ice and purple and gold Crown Royal paint schemes in a various races. He will also race another Sharpie special paint scheme at both Bristol races in 2005 featuring the retractable autographs for education marketing program. The No. 97 will carry the familiar Sharpie black colors and the autographs for education logo on the hood and rear quarter panels. Last Spring, Busch put the Sharpie 40th Anniversary car in Victory Lane at Bristol and placed eighth in the August event (Sharpie 500) driving the Sharpie RT Click paint scheme.
Carl Edwards: Roush Racing has secured five primary sponsorship's for the No. 99 with Office Depot, AAA Auto Club Group, Scotts, Ortho and World Financial Group. The red, white and black Office Depot Ford will hit the track at Daytona, Darlington, Chicago, California, Atlanta, Homestead, Texas and Bristol races. The Auto Club Group, based in Dearborn, Michigan, will sponsor Edwards at both Michigan races and at Indianapolis. AAA will also be a major associate at Chicago and an associate for the remainder of the races in 2005. Scotts will make their 2005 debut in the Gatorade Duel at Daytona, and return on the No. 99 at the first races at Atlanta, Martinsville, Texas, Talladega and Richmond races, and all three races at Lowe's Motor Speedway including the All-Star event in May. The black, gray and yellow Ortho Season Long Grass and Weed Killer paint scheme will race at Talladega in May. World Financial will be on the car at California (First race), Las Vegas, Atlanta (First race) and Phoenix (First race).