NASCAR: Wendy’s Sponsoring Noah Gragson, Beard Motorsports at Talladega
Wendy’s® (Nasdaq: WEN) has joined Beard Motorsports and driver Noah Gragson as its primary partner for the GEICO 500 NASCAR Cup Series race April 24 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.
Fresh off an impressive activation on the biggest stage in college basketball, where Wendy’s was the Official Breakfast of March Madness®, the company is shifting gears and traveling to the biggest oval track in NASCAR to share the fan-favorite $5 Biggie™ Bag with race enthusiasts.
Talladega is a high-banked, high-speed 2.66-mile oval and it’s where Gragson will drive the No. 62 Wendy’s $5 Biggie Bag Chevrolet Camaro in his second start for Beard Motorsports after debuting with the team in the season-opening Daytona 500.
“It was awesome to make my Cup Series debut with Beard and ever since Daytona I’ve been looking forward to rejoining them at Talladega,” said the 23-year-old Gragson. “We’ve got Wendy’s on board with us as they launch their $5 Biggie Bag promotion and I’m genuinely stoked about it. This is the first time they’ve been on a racecar in almost 20 years and they’re doing it with me. I’m proud of that and proud to have them at Beard Motorsports. Wendy’s has really embraced NASCAR as they’ve gone all in at Talladega.”
The $5 Biggie Bag comes complete with the choice of a Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger, Double Stack™, or a Crispy Chicken BLT with four-piece chicken nuggets (Spicy or Crispy), small Hot & Crispy Fries, and a small soft drink. A lot of flavor, a lot of value, a lot of choices.
The Biggie-st, baggiest meal deal is lapping the competition and going big at Talladega. In addition to its red-white-and-blue No. 62 Wendy’s $5 Biggie Bag Chevrolet Camaro, Wendy’s will have a pop-up restaurant in the infield at Talladega where fans can get their own $5 Biggie Bag without missing any of the racing action.
“A NASCAR race has an absolutely indescribable energy, and there’s no better place to promote our $5 Biggie Bag than at Talladega – the biggest oval track in NASCAR,” said Carl Loredo, Chief Marketing Officer for The Wendy’s Company. “Noah is an impressive person. He’s a brash racecar driver who doesn’t give an inch on the racetrack, but off the track, he has a genuine personality that deeply resonates with fans. Our partnership with him and Beard Motorsports is a great way to share our brand and get high-quality, great-tasting food in the hands of the most passionate fans in motorsports.”
Wendy’s founder is Dave Thomas, who founded the restaurant in 1969 in Columbus, Ohio. Today, Wendy’s and its franchisees employ hundreds of thousands of people across approximately 7,000 restaurants worldwide.
Beard Motorsports was founded by the late Mark Beard Sr., and is now run by his wife, Linda Beard. The generational race team has proven to be the little team that could, a modern-day David competing against the Goliaths of the NASCAR Cup Series.
“My dad was a ‘Go big or go home’ kind of person and that’s why Talladega and Daytona have been the tracks where we’ve decided to go and compete against the biggest teams in NASCAR. It’s a challenge and we love it,” said Amie Beard, Executive Vice President, Beard Motorsports.
“When you taste success at this level, it just makes it that much more rewarding. We take a lot of pride in what we do and how we do it. We’re about quality over quantity, and that’s how we plan to take care of Wendy’s and promote their $5 Biggie Bag at Talladega.”
Beard Motorsports makes it all work by taking a strategic approach to its racing endeavors. It runs only the superspeedway races at Talladega and its sister track, Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.
Gragson is a six-time winner in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, the stepping-stone division to the elite NASCAR Cup Series. Three of those victories came last season, netting Gragson a coveted spot in the NASCAR Playoffs where he advanced all the way to the Championship 4 finale, finishing a career-high third in points. Gragson continues to compete fulltime in the Xfinity Series for JR Motorsports while making select starts in the NASCAR Cup Series. Beard Motorsports PR