TALLADEGA, AL. – Life will imitate art at the 2.66-mile Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway oval where Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) will field two Ford Mustangs in Wonder Bread and Old Spice liveries.
The championship-winning NASCAR team co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart and Haas Automation founder Gene Haas will have Ryan Preece behind the wheel of the No. 41 Wonder Bread Ford Mustang while Chase Briscoe drives the No. 14 Old Spice Ford Mustang.
Preece & Chase:
Life will imitate art at the 2.66-mile Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway oval where Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) will field two Ford Mustangs in Wonder Bread and Old Spice liveries. The championship-winning NASCAR team co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart and Haas Automation founder Gene Haas will have Ryan Preece behind the wheel of the No. 41 Wonder Bread Ford Mustang while Chase Briscoe drives the No. 14 Old Spice Ford Mustang.
“Talladega Nights is one of my all-time favorite movies,” said Chase Briscoe. “If you’re a NASCAR driver or fan and you can’t watch it and appreciate how funny it is, then you’re missing out. I think the movie has really been embraced by fans and it probably brought some new eyes to our sport. I’m excited to be able to embrace the story and have some fun living out my Talladega Nights moment with Ryan.”
Speaking of Talladega Nights moments … being so close to Preece during his Daytona incident was probably as close as you’ve come to living out one of those movie moments.
“Yeah, it definitely was. You don’t realize it until after, it all happens so quickly,” added Briscoe. “I was just worried about Ryan and making sure he was OK. Then it was about whether we could keep going, or if the damage we had on the No. 14 was too much. We were out and I got the chance to talk with him at the care center. It was definitely a few days later after seeing the videos and everything else, knowing he was good and we could move on to the next thing, that it all really sunk in. You don’t think that’s something you’re going to witness and I’m sure it’s not something he ever thought he would be involved in. It’s a risk we know we are taking, but you hope that you are never in that situation. It’s definitely one of the most realistic moments, even if it’s exaggerated for entertainment.”
“We all laugh at the ridiculous things that happen in the movie, but it’s really all about teamwork and I think that’s one of the most important pieces of superspeedway racing,” said Briscoe. “It doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be working with your teammate, but you need someone that’s giving you that push or working with you if you want to stay up front. Maybe this is the weekend we engage the slingshot and see what it can do for us.”
The Return of Old Spice:
Old Spice’s presence on the No. 14 at Talladega will be a welcome sight for diehard Stewart fans, like Briscoe. Though the paint scheme is not the same one Stewart piloted in 2009 and 2010, in the early years of SHR, the sponsor reappearing on the car previously driven by “Smoke” is a fitting nod to the three-time Cup Series champion.
“I’m really glad that Old Spice was on board to come back to Stewart-Haas Racing,” said Briscoe. “Obviously, we wouldn’t be able to do the Talladega Nights deal without them, and as a Tony Stewart fan who has gone on to drive his car, it’s really special to be able to bring that back for all the fans.”
Briscoe at Talladega:
In five Cup Series starts at Talladega, Briscoe owns one top-five and two top-10 starts with a best finish of fourth earned in April. He finished inside the top five once in four Xfinity Series starts and recorded a third-place finish in the April 2016 ARCA Menards Series race there.
Showing Speed:
Four weeks ago at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, Briscoe earned his second career Cup Series pole and first on a superspeedway. He started on the front row alongside SHR teammate Aric Almirola, marking the third front-row sweep for SHR. In 2018, SHR drivers qualified on the front row for both races at Talladega. Kevin Harvick started from the pole in April alongside Kurt Busch and in the October race with Busch on the pole and Clint Bowyer second.
One Week Ago at Texas:
Briscoe and the No. 14 team were six laps away from a win last Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. Briscoe started 31st and the team utilized an off-sequence pit strategy to place the 28-year-old driver inside the top 10 late in the final stage. Briscoe worked his way into the top five and restarted on the front row after a caution with six laps remaining. Briscoe got by Bubba Wallace as the race returned to green but damage to the nose of the No. 14 Ford from a previous restart affected its handling and left Briscoe with a 10th-place finish.
About Old Spice:
Procter & Gamble’s Old Spice is the quintessential grooming brand. With more than 80 years as an American icon, Old Spice is the authority on grooming experience and has leveraged this heritage to become the No.1-selling antiperspirant and deodorant brand for guys in the United States. Old Spice offers a complete product portfolio for today’s evolving needs, including antiperspirants, deodorants, body washes, body sprays, shampoos, and hair stylers. Visit Old Spice online at www.OldSpice.com and its social media channels on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, X, and Facebook.
