Sunoco rolled into NASCAR back in 2003 with a bold 10-year deal, stepping in as the official fuel supplier and leaving out the 53-year partnership with the Unocal 76 brand that had powered the sport since the inaugural. That move kicked off a partnership that’s logged over 15.5 million miles across the national series, fueling more than 1,300 victories. Teams fired up Sunoco Supreme at first, then shifted to the high-octane Green E15 blend in 2011, a 15% ethanol mix that’s cut emissions while keeping engines roaring without missing a beat.

Fast forward to today, and Sunoco stands as a $6.94 billion powerhouse, blending its B2B fuel distribution muscle with a network of 5,200 stores mostly clustered in the Northeast. This tie-up has quietly boosted NASCAR’s green cred, supporting American corn farmers through that ethanol push and even powering barrier-breakers like Danica Patrick’s 2013 Daytona pole. With the current agreement winding down after 2025, eyes are turning to what’s next in this evolving fuel story.

NASCAR‘s eyeing a shorter-term renewal with Sunoco for 2026, a smart play to dip a toe back into the sponsor pool and chase a brand with deeper national roots. This setup lets the series test waters without locking in long, especially as Sunoco’s deal, worth around $10 million yearly, expires, leaving a potential revenue hole if no one’s biting.

.@NASCAR could do a shorter-term renewal with Sunoco to test the market again in a few years and look for another company with a larger national and global presence.

➡️ For example, Sunoco has 866 locations in Pennsylvania but just eight in California. https://t.co/5fJguqSLDS

— Adam Stern (@A_S12) October 14, 2025

Back in 2004, Sunoco’s entry locked in reliable in-kind fuel for Cup, Xfinity, and Trucks, but two decades later, its shift to wholesale after ditching 1,100 retail spots to 7-Eleven in 2017 has dialed back those flashy consumer ads. Sunoco Director of Marketing Fred McConnell put it plainly: “We can confirm that we are in talks with NASCAR about the 2026 season and beyond.”

That openness hints at flexibility, born from chats where NASCAR shopped the category to giants like ExxonMobil, all while plotting sustainability tweaks amid F1’s full sustainable fuel pivot by 2026.

The experiment could reshape race weekends by drawing in a sponsor whose pumps fans actually spot on road trips, amping up visibility beyond the track. Picture bundled deals folding in Mobil 1’s motor oil gig for a one-stop energy powerhouse, or fresh marketing that ties pit stops to everyday fill-ups, stuff that once had Sunoco hawking tire-scented cologne in 2015.

NASCAR ex-President Steve Phelps captured the bigger picture in talks with OEMs: “What’s the (future) power plant going to look like? What’s the fuel going to look like? What is the body style going to look like? How do we differentiate the series?”

His words underscore how fuel’s not just logistics anymore; it’s a lever for innovation, like E15’s seamless swap that barely nudged mileage but slashed CO₂ per gallon. A short hitch with Sunoco buys time to land that game-changer, steadying the $10 million flow while the sport eyes biofuels.

This market nudge has the garage humming, but it’s the stands where the real chatter’s firing up, with fans weighing in with everything from laughs to sharp takes on what could pump new life into the series.

Fan takes heat up over Sunoco’s next lap

One Redditor couldn’t resist a jab at bulk-buying vibes, quipping, “Get Costco fuel as the sponsor 😂.” It’s easy to chuckle, but there’s a kernel of real talk there. Costco’s no stranger to racing crowds, with its massive gas stations drawing lines for cheap fills and that members-only edge. Just look at the Daytona warehouse across from the Speedway, decked out in NASCAR flair since opening in 2024, complete with checkered-flag accents that nod to the roar next door.

Fans grabbing $1.50 hot dogs while eyeing V8s? It fits the tailgate crowd, and with Costco’s 600-plus U.S. pumps pushing high-volume, low-price fuel, a sponsorship could mirror how they’ve quietly fueled road warriors without the glitz.

Shifting gears to the Northeast stronghold, another fan from Pennsylvania chimed in: “I live in Pennsylvania and can confirm. There are about 50 of them within a 50-mile radius of my house. 😂” Spot on, Sunoco dominates there with 866 stations statewide, a density that turns any Philly-to-Pittsburgh haul into a sea of yellow-and-red signs.

That footprint stems from roots in the region’s refineries, where Sunoco started blending fuels over a century ago, long before NASCAR. For locals, it’s as routine as a Wawa run, but it spotlights why the brand feels niche elsewhere, fueling debates on whether a sponsor needs coast-to-coast pop to stick.

“I’ve seen the Amoco brand making a return lately.” BP has been dusting off that torch logo since 2018, starting in Chicago and spreading by mid-2025, blending nostalgia with fresh pumps. Amoco powered early NASCAR haulers in the ’50s, before fading post-2000 merger, so its comeback stirs memories of orange-ball fire-ups. Fans see parallels to Sunoco’s regional lock-in, wondering if a revived icon could blend heritage with broader reach.

“This is one of those things that makes complete sense in retrospect once I actually think about it, but I legitimately didn’t know Sunoco even HAD locations until this post. I’ve never seen one in my life. I suppose I always just assumed they were strictly B2B or a parent company of some other brand.”

Fair point. Post-2017, Sunoco leaned hard into wholesale, distributing to fleets and terminals across 40 states via 14,000 pipeline miles, while retail took a backseat. That pivot let them chase B2B deals like F1 tie-ins, but it left casual drivers none the wiser, much like how Hess vanished from maps after its 2013 Marathon sale.

Speculation on swaps rounded out the thread, with a voice pitching, “Mobil 1 may be interested. They do sponsor most victory lanes. Shell possibly as well.” Mobil 1 has locked in those confetti moments at NASCAR tracks since 2024, extending its motor oil crown, while Shell has revved Penske engines for over a decade, netting 29 Cup wins. Joey Logano‘s throwbacks echo that Pennzoil push, so folding fuel under one roof? It could streamline the garage, blending victory pops with pump loyalty.