NASCAR kicked off its 75th anniversary season with a television spot celebrating the legends who built the sport. This campaign continues with “Roads”, which highlights current stars.
The new 30-second TV spot, which debuted May 26, actually begins with a Hall of Famer. Dale Earnhardt Jr. drives the 75th anniversary entrance to Caraway Speedway in Sophia, NC while recounting the “million roads” to NASCAR. It then passes a young Daniel Suarez, Bubba Wallace and Chase Elliott while outlining their respective paths to stardom.
The goal of putting Earnhardt center stage is to have him close the gap. It represents the past and it provides a connection to the drivers who are currently helping lead NASCAR into the future.
“NASCAR’s growth is really important to me, and it’s great to see the sport grow with so many talented racers from different fields and backgrounds as the sport continues to evolve,” Earnhardt said.
“It was an honor to be included in this campaign to help celebrate where NASCAR has been and where it is going as part of the 75th anniversary.”
NASCAR had specific reasons for including each driver
GettyChase Elliott (left) and Bubba Wallace (right) prepare for qualifying at Darlington Raceway.
Each driver included in “Roads” is tailored based on their journey to the Cup Series, as well as the impact they have had. All three celebrated victories while one added a championship to his resume.
Suarez, in particular, is in his seventh full-time season in the Cup Series. He faced his fair share of hardships driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, Stewart-Haas Racing, Gaunt Brothers Racing and Trackhouse Racing. He also made NASCAR history by becoming the first Mexican-born driver to win a Cup Series race.
Wallace, for comparison, spent the first three seasons of his Cup Series career driving for Richard Petty Motorsports. He didn’t have many chances to challenge for wins, but he had nine top 10s and three top fives.
Once Wallace joined 23XI Racing, he began to make more significant progress. He set career bests in multiple categories each season and won two races. The first of these, Talladega in 2021, made Wallace the second black driver to win in Cup Series history.
Elliott hasn’t adapted to multiple teams since moving to the Cup Series. Instead, he was a key figure at Hendrick Motorsports. He was a contender for the team while racking up 18 wins, three four championship appearances and a Cup Series championship. Elliott has also been named the most popular driver every year since 2018.
Another TV spot will debut later in 2023
The 2023 season has been a celebration of NASCAR’s past, present and future. This was reflected in the TV spots, two of which aired during the FOX Sports portion of the program.
The first TV spot was about the origins of the sport and its legends. There were stock cars racing on the beach, as well as Bill Elliott setting the fastest speed record in NASCAR history – 2012.808 mph at Talladega Superspeedway.
The second spot focused on the present. Earnhardt, Suarez, Wallace and Elliott highlighted the paths leading to the NASCAR Cup Series and the great moments they all celebrated.
There will be one more spot that makes up this campaign. The latest will focus on the future of NASCAR and will debut before the start of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs on Sunday, September 3.
