NASCAR Appoints Craig Stimmel as Senior VP and Chief Commercial Officer
NASCAR announced the hiring of Craig Stimmel as Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, placing him at the helm of all sales efforts for the organization. Stimmel will oversee various aspects of NASCAR’s commercial strategy, including partnerships with premier and official sponsors, race entitlements, track collaborations, and media sales across platforms like Motor Racing Network (MRN) and NASCAR Digital Media. He will also work closely with NASCAR’s media partners, teams, and non-NASCAR tracks to develop commercial opportunities throughout the NASCAR ecosystem.
Stimmel brings a wealth of experience from top-tier roles in property, media, and consumer sectors. Previously, he led global sales and partnerships for WWE and held a similar position at Snapchat. Earlier in his career, he worked on brand marketing at Procter & Gamble. Most recently, he served as Senior Vice President of Commercial for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Brian Herbst, NASCAR’s Executive Vice President and Chief Media and Revenue Officer, praised Stimmel’s qualifications:
“Craig’s proven track record of driving results and building billion-dollar brands in a multi-faceted environment like ours was one of several reasons why we felt he was an excellent fit for this role. NASCAR has the most brand-loyal fans and many of the most recognized sponsorships in professional sports, and Craig brings all the acumen to build upon our roster of tremendous partners and continue to deepen the engagement with our fans.”
Stimmel expressed enthusiasm about his new role:
“In recent years, NASCAR has taken some impressive and successful steps to grow the sport, authentically tell the brand story and build momentum for the future. When you combine those factors with all the ways small and large brands alike can engage fans, new customers, or new partners, it makes this opportunity extremely desirable, and I’m eager to continue building on the foundation already in place.”
Stimmel will be based in NASCAR’s New York office and manage a team spread across more than 20 offices and race-track locations nationwide. He officially begins his role today and will report to Brian Herbst.
