Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle Association, speaks during the Western Hunting & Conservation Expo Banquet at the Salt Palace Convention Center on Saturday, Feb. 23, 2013, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — The National Rifle Association will be the title sponsor for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Texas next month.

NRA's sponsorship with Texas Motor Speedway was announced during the track's media day Monday. The April 13 race, the first scheduled night race of the season, will be known as the NRA 500.

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The deal comes at a time when the NRA is involved in a renewed debate on gun violence in the wake of the December shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

This is not the NRA's first title sponsorship in NASCAR. The group sponsored a Nationwide race at Atlanta last September.

TMS president Eddie Gossage says the NRA has been involved for several years as a partner of the Speedway Motorsports Inc., which owns the track.