Toyota Announces Sponsafier Winners

Toyota Racing today awarded the grand prize to “AJBULOWSCAR” in the fourth round of its popular Sponsafier contest, where fans could design and enter their own NASCAR Sprint Cup car at www.ToyotaRacing.com from June 5 to Aug. 28 to win a visit from their favorite Toyota NASCAR driver. The winning artwork, created by David Bulow of San Jose, Calif., triumphed over more than 26,000 entries and will be brought to life at Phoenix International Raceway — a No. 18 Camry sporting the “AJBULOWSCAR” paint scheme will be on display at the SPEED stage on Sunday.

Toyota Racing launched the inaugural Sponsafier contest at the 2010 Daytona 500. Since then, four rounds of the contest have resulted in more than 200,000 design submissions and over two million public votes. Artwork has ranged from marriage proposal cars and patriotic racers to cause-related designs. “AJUBLOWSCAR” joins the ranks of previous Sponsafier grand prize winners “Praying for Karson,” “Lou Gehrig aka ALS” and “Chelsea’s Hope.”

“Over the past two years, interest from fans in the Sponsafier program has exceeded our expectations,” said Ed Laukes, vice president–marketing communications & motorsports for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. (TMS). “It has provided fans with a unique way to connect with their favorite Toyota driver, as well as allow fans to highlight something that they feel is important or special. We’ve received a tremendous amount of positive feedback from fans, and our Toyota drivers have really enjoyed being part of the program. We would like to thank all the fans for their submissions.”

Similar to past rounds of the contest, fans were invited to create as many designs as they wished utilizing tools from the site. They were encouraged to share their work on social networking sites to rally votes from friends, family and admirers of their designs. More than 180,000 votes were cast to narrow the field down to ten finalists. In addition to Bulow’s car, finalists included:

  • “Anthony’s Car” submitted by Michelle G. of Acwroth, Ga.

  • “Avery’s Hope” submitted by Adam R. of Hernando, Miss.

  • “Cameron” submitted by Joseph G. of Branson , Mo.

  • “Carcinoid Car” submitted by Danielle P. of Hawthorne, N.Y.

  • “Cure for Alzheimer’s” submitted by Janice K. of Palm Springs, Calif.

  • “Decorah Eagles” submitted by George B. of Las Vegas, Nev.

  • “Helping Paws” submitted by Jennifer H. of Huntingdon, Penn.

  • “Moose Charities” submitted by Brian T. of Kissimmee, Fla.

  • “Sponsafied for a Soldier” submitted by Zachary W. of Belton, S.C.

Each finalist will receive a 1/12 scale die-cast car with his or her Sponsafied paint scheme.

A final round of public voting took place from Oct. 5-19, and then a panel of judges comprised of Toyota executives and NASCAR personalities determined the grand prize winner. Along with a visit from his favorite Toyota driver, Bulow’s grand prize package also includes the opportunity to showcase his design at a NASCAR race track, a 1/12 scale die-cast car of his design and assorted Toyota Racing gear.

Bulow created the paint scheme based on design input from his six-year-old son, AJ. The young NASCAR enthusiast instructed his dad on everything from the racing flames to the checkered flag on the car’s rear bumper. The car features a photo of AJ piloting Kyle Busch’s No. 18 Camry along each side. The Bulow family previously sent the photo to Busch and it was returned autographed. AJ has been hooked on NASCAR and an avid fan ever since.

“There have been quite a few designs that have been really, really colorful and unique,” said Keith Dahl, national motorsports and engagement marketing manager. “Racing is a team sport, so it’s fitting that the winning entry came from a father and son team. The story behind the design is pretty neat — that AJ became a fan after getting an autographed picture — and that image is featured on the winning design.”

To view “AJ Bulow’s Car” and the all of the designs in the gallery, visit www.ToyotaRacing.com.

Toyota Racing PR