Maxxis reports that it is working hard to synergise its sponsorship and advertising links with Premier League football clubs and its major fleet business customers, treating the latter to VIP hospitality with the former. Four Maxxis customers enjoyed a Yossi Benayoun hat-trick – his third in two years – courtesy of the manufacturer, when Liverpool beat Burnley 4-0 at Anfield on 12 September.
Having made headway in the UK passenger car and light truck segments, Maxxis reports that it is now on the lookout for heavy truck tyre distribution partners. The company’s main selling point (both to customers and potential distribution partners is the long term mileage performance of its products. According to the company, tests with leading UK fleets show the all-important PPM (pence per mile) figures achieved by the Maxxis 22.5 inch heavy truck range are on a par with those reported by the top brands. While the figures are not yet complete (due to the ongoing nature of the tests) company representatives told Tyres & Accessories the figures are still helping to “boost the brand’s credentials for quality, reliability and value in this sector.”
Round Four of the British Drift Championship belonged firmly to Team Japspeed as its drivers, Danny Eyles, Shane Lynch and Steve Biagioni took to the podium having drifted successfully around the Norfolk Arena.
Operating as a national distributor with the ability to focus on a local level, Grouptyre has the ability to develop solid business relationships with tyre retailers and grow its share of the market. Despite the challenging trading environment, Grouptyre’s 13 member companies say they are continuing to invest in the business, making improvements in distribution and upgrading IT systems to enhance the organisation’s overall product and service offerings, improving communications, sharing best practice and developing new business models.
Maxxis-sponsored Team Japspeed experienced success with driver Danny Eyles winning Round Three of the Prodrift Super Series at Donington (held back on 8 August), setting up an exciting series climax to be held at the end of the week (6 September).
Maxxis is continuing to increase its exposure to the tyre-buying public through football sponsorship, and having made key Barclays Premier League signings eagerly awaits the start of the 2009/10 season. After agreeing to extend its sponsorship of Liverpool FC until the end of the 2011/12 season, Maxxis has also renewed its arrangement with Aston Villa FC and signed a new deal with Sunderland AFC.
Following on the from the company’s three-year deal with Liverpool FC, sponsorship of the 2009 Isle of Man TT Races, ongoing role as title sponsor of the Maxxis ACU British Motocross Championship and increased involvement in professional drifting tend to make the biggest headlines, Maxxis has reiterated grass roots sport.
At the end of June the company announced it has sponsored two Kenilworth Wardens youth teams, which play matches every Sunday in the Mid-Warwickshire Football Leagues. Last season the Under-9s were among 66 teams competing in the Mid-Warwickshire Junior Football League and they finished fourth in Division 1 and made the quarter final stage of the League Cup.
S.D. International, the company behind the Pace and Zeta brands, has been accepted into membership of the Imported Tyre Manufacturers’ Association. The manufacturer’s membership means that the association now comprises twelve members: Alliance, Alfred Graham Ltd., GiTi, Hankook, Kumho, Lassa, Maxxis, S.D.International, Toyo, Westlake and Yokohama.
Peter Nicholls, S.D. International’s Sales & Marketing Director explained his company’s decision to join ITMA: “We are rapidly becoming a significant player in the UK and European markets, so have been considering this move for some time. We want to play our part in the industry as well as better protect our interests in the face of the current legislative and regulatory onslaught. ITMA membership fulfils that need.”
Maxxis has announced that its speciality drifting and track racing tyre, the MA-Z1 Drift, is now in stock in an expanded range of sizes. The tyre has been praised by Maxxis-sponsored professional drift driver Declan Hicks, who declared the difference between the specialist drift tyre and standard road tyres to be “quite astounding”. E-marked and fully street legal, it is now available in the following sizes:
•195/45 R16 MAZ1 DRIFT 84V XL
•195/50 R15 MAZ1 DRIFT 86V XL
•205/40 ZR17 MAZ1 DRIFT 84W XL
•225/40 ZR18 MAZ1 DRIFT 92W XL
•225/45 ZR17 MAZ1 DRIFT 94W XL
•235/35 ZR19 MAZ1 DRIFT 91W XL
•235/40 ZR18 MAZ1 DRIFT 95W XL
•245/40 ZR17 MAZ1 DRIFT 95W XL
•245/40 ZR18 MAZ1 DRIFT 97W XL
•255/35 ZR18 MAZ1 DRIFT 94W XL
Maxxis reports that its industrial range – a line-up that includes skid steer tyres purpose-designed for use in a variety of heavy duty applications, including construction, agriculture and dockside loading/ unloading – is selling well and that further distributors are required to help develop business opportunities in a number of sectors.
“Since the range was officially launched in the UK last May we have seen a good level of interest from heavy industry, especially dockside freight businesses, and are now looking to appoint additional distributors to enable us to take full advantage of the opportunities this niche marketplace presents,” states Maxxis International UK’s managing director Derek McMartin. “Our skid steer tyres are designed to tackle the most demanding jobs and are highly versatile, delivering superior traction and wear as a result of their extra strong casings, sturdy sidewalls and specially formulated rubber compound.”
Maxxis has announced that it will extend its brand awareness activities at Anfield, the home of Liverpool FC, following its tie up for the final stages of the 2008/09 Barclays Premier League. The company has concluded a deal which will lengthen the relationship by a further three years. As an Official Partner of Liverpool FC until the end of the 2011/12 season, Maxxis will be heavily involved with the club – one of the giants of the game – showing the company’s desire to further its commitment to football and sport in general.
Under the terms of the deal, Maxxis will be entitled to an extensive rights inventory, providing it with prominent exposure through a pitchside advertising presence at every home fixture (except Champions League matches) plus advertisements in This is Anfield (the matchday programme) and in LFC Magazine, the club’s weekly magazine. Maxxis will also feature on Liverpool FC’s own TV channel, LFC TV – which was launched in 2007 and keeps almost three million UK viewers up to date with the club’s activities. The brand will continue to advertise on one of the UK’s most popular football websites, www.liverpoolfc.tv.
Modified Live, an event held on the weekend of 25 April, 2009 at Oulton Park witnessed saw the Team Maxxis Yamaha YZF-R1 superbike pitched against a modified Subaru Impreza to answer an eternal question: which is faster, four wheels or two. Following an early downpour and a last minute change to the programme, which saw the original car – a Norris Design SWB Mitsubishi Evo – replaced by a Subaru Impreza, driven by 2009 Time Attack Pro Class Champion, Olly Clark, from Roger Clark Motorsport.
Under official timed trials, provided by Timing Solutions Limited, Clark was the first to take to the track. He drove his 2009 RCM 850bhp Impreza around three laps of the shorter Island circuit, recording 1:27:588 on his second. Unperturbed by the Impreza’s time, Team Maxxis rider Dave Johnson took to the circuit, and by the start of lap two, felt comfortable enough to open the throttle of the 185 bhp Superbike, finishing his second lap in a time of 1:25:566, 2.022 seconds faster than the RCM Impreza.
Following its sponsorship of Everton, Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur, Maxxis has signed a deal with Liverpool FC to display its branding at Anfield until the end of this season (2008-09). The new partnership offers Maxxis worldwide exposure using the LED perimeter advertising system at the stadium for against Arsenal (21 April), Newcastle (2 May) and Tottenham Hotspur (24 May), in addition to the victory over Blackburn Rovers 11 April.
The partnership package includes prominent Maxxis Tyres advertising on Liverpool FC’s official website the UK’s most popular football website with 1.6 million registered users and up to 2.9 million unique visitors per month.
“The Barclays Premier League title run-in will be very close so we are delighted to have the opportunity to raise awareness of our brand at Liverpool FC games that will not only be sell-outs, but which will also be the main focus of TV’s football coverage for the remainder of the season,” said Maxxis Tyres UK’s managing director Derek McMartin.
Maxxis has partnered with Max Power in an affiliation programme that gives the company opportunities to promote its range to the lucrative tuning, styling and performance sector. The deal, which officially began in March 2009, will see Maxxis support a series of Max Power tyre features, raise its profile through branding on the magazine’s website and provide product for testing and subsequent reporting in the popular ‘Max Garage’ pages. Maxxis will also sponsor the ‘InGear’ tuning section and the two companies will collaborate at four major performance/tuning shows throughout the year: the International Styling and Tuning Show (April 11-12), the UK Modified Nationals Show (May 23-24), the Modified and Performance North East (July 19) and Ultimate Street Car (August 1-2).
The Maxxis Babes will be in attendance at these events and Maxxis will also be taking along its new hospitality facility. Featuring a striking Maxxis livery, the glass-fronted trailer unit incorporates a 12.5m x 8m awning, a separate stage area, kitchen and an upper deck – which will be dual-branded to reinforce the partnership – where guests can enjoy great views of the action.
Maxxis has announced that it will be supporting Team Japspeed in the British Drift Championship (BDC), European Drift Championship (EDC) and Pro Drift Series this season. All of the team’s cars will carry Maxxis livery and will be using the MA-ZI Drift tyre, based on the road-going version but incorporating a specially developed high temperature silicone rubber compound for long life and the all-important smoke that increases the number of points scored.
“We’re aiming to capitalise on the growing enthusiasm for drifting in the UK to build awareness of the Maxxis brand and promote the quality, performance and value of our high performance range,” says Maxxis International UK’s managing director Derek McMartin. “This season our partners will be using the MA-Z1 Drift tyre, which has been developed specifically for the sport, but is also street legal, and we are looking forward to some good performances across the country’s premier drifting series.”
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.
