Texas pole-winners to be given a Gun!

In what has to be the first of a kind in the world of Motorsport, the Nextel Cup drivers who win pole position at the Texas Motor Speedway in 2005 will be awarded with a unique Beretta firearm.

The 1.5-mile venue, which will host two Nextel Cup races for the first time in its history next year, has announced an official partnership agreement with gun-makers Beretta naming the company as the "Official Firearm" of the speedway.

Beretta will present Texas Nextel Cup race pole winners with one of its Giubileo (pronounced jubi-lay-o) 12-gauge over/under shotguns.

Each Giubileo will be customized with the driver's likeness and number on one of the side plates 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."

The announcement was made with Nextel Cup driver Rusty Wallace, Cathy Williams of Beretta and speedway president Eddie Gossage at the annual Texas Motor Speedway Media Day.

Master engravers Giulio Timpini and Luca Casari of Beretta produced original artwork depicting Wallace and his number as an example of how future Texas pole winners will be depicted.

Timpini and Casari also created the artwork featuring Texas Motor Speedway and the speedway logo for the other side plate.

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 side plates 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."

With its world headquarters still located in Italy, Beretta is the oldest industrial dynasty in the world. Started as a foundry in the 1500's, the company has been in continuous family ownership for 16 generations. The company started producing firearms in the late 1600's and branched out to the United States in 1977.