Atlanta Motor Speedway-Pep Boys settle dispute over sponsorship
The Pep Boys Auto logo adorns the pace car used in last year's Sprint Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. // Atlanta Motor Speedway, Courtesy
Atlanta Motor Speedway and Pep Boys have reached an out-of-court settlement of the track’s lawsuit against the auto parts retail chain over the title sponsorship of the Sept. 6. Sprint Cup race at the track, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court in Atlanta.
The settlement was not filed with the court, but an AMS spokesman indicated that the race will remain being called the Pep Boys Auto 500 this year.
AMS had sued Pep Boys over non-payment of a portion of its $1.6 million naming-rights fee for this year’s race. Pep Boys paid $1.4 million in the first year of the two-year deal but missed a payment for this year, prompting AMS to file suit.
Pep Boys had claimed in court documents that moving the date from late October to Labor Day weekend didn’t fit into its marketing plan.
