Greg Biffle shoots a set of Beretta Stainless Stampedes in Victory Lane at the Texas Motor Speedway. He was celebrating his win at the Nextel Samsung/Radio Shack 500

TEXAS ACE - Defending Samsung/RadioShack 500 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race winner Elliott Sadler has not only tamed Texas Motor Speedway but took on area media skeet shooters and came away a winner Tuesday at Circle T Ranch. Sadler will be seeking to become the first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series repeat winner at Texas Motor Speedway in the April 17 Samsung/RadioShack 500. (Texas Motor Speedway image).

Sadler adept on speedway and in the outdoors

FORT WORTH-DALLAS, Texas—Elliott Sadler has proven himself at Texas Motor Speedway and in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series. The defending winner of the Samsung/RadioShack 500 at “The Great American Speedway” demonstrated his adept outdoors skills Tuesday during a media skeet shoot at the Circle T Ranch in Westlake.

The driver of the No. 38 M&M’s Ford has taken to Texas Motor Speedway, winning not only last year’s NEXTEL Cup event but also sitting on the pole for the 1998 Busch Series race at the speedway. Obviously he brought his “A” game to Texas Tuesday for the skeet shoot that he won over local media representatives.

Sadler handled the Beretta 687 EELL Diamond Pigeon 12-gauge over/under shotgun to near perfection during the skeet shoot. He edged media finalist Doug Branch of ESPN 103.3 Radio by one clay pigeon to claim the day’s title.

“This was really a neat thing to do today,” said Sadler. “I have never done something like this with the media, so it was really cool.

“Eddie Gossage and all the people at Texas Motor Speedway really know how to do things right,” commented Sadler. “They always treat the drivers great when we come here. I haven’t shot skeet in awhile, but I think I did pretty well. It came down to me having to hit the last target to win, so the pressure was on. It was a lot of fun.”

Sadler’s accomplishments Tuesday didn’t surprise those that know him well. Sadler is an accomplished outdoorsman, serves as a hunting guide and raises Walker hunting dogs in the winter months.

Sadler hopes his Tuesday skeet shoot success translates into on-track honors during the Samsung/RadioShack 500 race week. The winner of the Bud Pole Award on The Dallas Morning News Qualifying Day April 15 will also receive a custom Beretta Giubileo 12-gauge over/under shotgun worth more than $65,000. The Giubileo will then be engraved with the driver’s likeness and the car number on one side and the qualifying day logo on the other.

Sadler will then return in search of a second consecutive Samsung/RadioShack 500 triumph on Sunday, April 17. There has never been a repeat winner in the eight previous NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series races at Texas.

“Texas Motor Speedway is one of my favorite tracks,” Sadler said. “We always run really well here. I am glad we are coming here two times this year. It is an important market for us and I look forward to it.”

Franco Beretta, Vice President of Beretta, presents a Giubileo to Nextel Cup race pole winner, Ryan Newman.

 BERETTA OFFERS UNIQUE POLE AWARD AT THE TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY

Beretta presented Ryan Newman, Nextel Cup race pole winner with one of its Giubileo (pronounced jubi-lay-o) 12-gauge over/under shotguns. 

Although the stock Gubileo can be purchased by consumers for $14,000, the ones being done for Texas Motor Speedway will be crafted by Beretta's master engravers, bringing the value of each gun to more than $65,000.   Each Giubileo will be customized with the driver's likeness and number on one of the sideplates making it a one-of-a-kind piece.

"There's nothing else like this in all of motorsports," said speedway president Eddie Gossage.  "The drivers are going to be thoroughly impressed.  It's great to be a pole winner but they're also receiving something that will truly be a one-of-a kind piece.  How many people can say they have a beautiful custom-made shotgun with their own likeness on it?  Beretta has such an incredible history of craftsmanship, they're the only company out there who could produce something like this."

When a driver wins the pole for each Texas Cup race, they will be presented with a Giubileo in victory lane.  The driver's likeness, their number and the qualifying day logo will then be drawn and hand engraved in steel using the Bulino technique, a process that utilizes a pin-like instrument to create an image using a series of dots at varying depths.  It takes approximately 300 hours to hand engrave the two sideplates and other engraved pieces for each Giubileo.

"We are excited about this partnership with Texas Motor Speedway," said Matteo Recanatini, Director of Consumer Marketing and Communications for Beretta.  "The world of motor racing embodies the love for precision, competitiveness and testing of one's limits, which have been cornerstones of the Beretta brand for centuries.  This partnership will also allow us to be closer to our consumers and to celebrate with them this great American passion that is NASCAR." 

Something to Shoot for.
A $65,000 Shotgun Will Go to Texas Pole Winner.

By Aman Batheja
Fort Worth Star-Telegram

FORT WORTH - In years past, the best drivers at Texas Motor Speedway have won trophies modeled after cowboy boots and the state of Texas.

This year, speedway officials decided to stop being so subtle.

With an embrace of Lone Star heritage that would be hard to top, the trophies up for grabs this year include a custom-made shotgun valued at $65,000 and a bronzed, nickel-plated cowboy hat.

It's just the latest addition to a growing tradition in auto racing: chucking the staid, dull metal-cup trophy for something that draws on local traditions and pride.

And, of course, nobody does it bigger or better than Texas.

"When you see this photograph of a driver holding a trophy (at Texas Motor Speedway), there's no question," said Eddie Gossage, speedway president and general manager. "This driver is not at Daytona, not at Monte Carlo, not in Japan. That driver is in Texas."

This year, Italian gunmaker Beretta is offering a Guibilieo (Italian for "jubilee") 12-gauge over/under shotgun to the driver who spins the fastest lap Friday in qualifying for Sunday's Nextel Cup Samsung/Radioshack 500. Another will be given to the pole sitter at the Nextel Cup Dickie's 500 in November.

The Texas Motor Speedway logo is engraved on one side. On the other will be the pole sitter's likeness and car number.

The engravers will spend 300 hours working on each gun, said Matteo Recanatini, a Beretta spokesman.

Beretta executives had been seeking ways to connect with potential customers when Texas Motor Speedway contacted them last year, Recanatini said.

"A lot of the drivers are shooters and most of them are hunters," he said. "The fit seemed to be a match made in heaven."

The shotguns will be among the few functional trophies in professional sports, Recanatini added.

Terry Labonte said he has won many trophies during his 27-year NASCAR career, which includes a victory at Texas Motor Speedway in 1999. "But never anything cool like that," he said.

"I wouldn't probably use it if it's worth $65,000," said Labonte, who is semi-retired. He will run only 10 Nextel Cup races this year, including both Texas races.

Since its opening in 1997, Texas Motor Speedway has awarded trophies linked to Lone Star State traditions.

The winner of Sunday's Nextel Cup race, as has been traditional since 1998, will receive a pair of custom-carved wooden boots with real spurs.

Joe Spiller, who owns Spiller Spurs and Bits in the West Texas town of Wingate, has produced the larger-than-average trophy spurs for more than five years.

For the Dickies 500 in November, the big prize will be pure Texas and also rooted in Texas Motor Speedway tradition.

For years, the speedway has passed out custom-made straw hats to the winning team in Victory Lane. The American Hat Company in Bowie, Texas, provides the hats.