A couple of weeks ago Rick Ware Racing had an interesting announcement that metal band Slayer would sponsor a No. 54 car for the organization at Bristol Motor Speedway.
When the car showed up at Bristol it did not have Slayer’s logo on it and instead it had the company PODS Moving and Storage plastered all over. It was confusing. Had Slayer backed out of the agreement? Had NASCAR banned the sponsorship from the heavy metal band?
Turns out neither were true.
In a statement on Friday night, Ware explained that Slayer’s image and background didn’t align with the beliefs and image of the other sponsors that he has signed for his car’s teams. As a result, he opted to forgo the sponsorship before accepting any payment from the band.
“Rick Ware Racing and Slayer announced a partnership for Bristol Motor Speedway several weeks ago,” said Ware in the statement. “There were no contracts or monetary transactions between either parties. Unfortunately, Slayer’s brand image and beliefs, and Rick Ware Racing and our long-time partners’ image and beliefs do not align. As a team owner, we thought it would be best to forgo the partnership. RWR wishes nothing but the best to Slayer and their fans and wishes the band a successful Final World Tour.”
