Bubba Wallace and 23XI Racing has lost a major sponsor in DoorDash, as their longterm partnership with the brand has reportedly come to an end.
DoorDash Drops Wallace
Motorsports Wire reported that DoorDash was a prominent sponsor of Wallace’s No. 23 NASCAR car since 2021. However, it will not be sponsoring him or 23XI Racing moving forward. DoorDash reportedly slowly decreased its commitment to races throughout last year before backing out completely.
“You’ve got to understand your partner’s business enough to bring solutions that solve their problems, and I think we’ve done a pretty good job at that,” 23XI Racing President Steve Lauletta told Essentially Sports. “Then you’ve got to deliver, and we’ve been lucky to deliver on all the partners that have been here.”
“Does that mean they’re all going to stay here for 10 to 15 years?” he added. “No, it doesn’t mean that. But it’s not for a lack of ideas, collaboration, support, relationships. Things change all the time.”
Other NASCAR Teams Losing Sponsors
Other NASCAR teams have faced similar issues with losing sponsors, with some examples being Joe Gibbs Racing with Mars’ departure and FedEx’s decreased involvement with Denny Hamlin.
NASCAR organizations depend heavily on sponsors, so DoorDash dropping out is very bad news for both Wallace and 23XI Racing. This is undoubtedly especially tough for Wallace to swallow, as he was so devoted to DoorDash that he starred in a commercial for the brand back in 2022. Check that out below.
Difficult Time For Wallace
This comes at a difficult time for Wallace. While he started this season with two top-5 finishes in a row, he hasn’t placed since.
“Aside from speedway races, we have not been executing the way we should be,” he recently confessed. “We’ve been taking ourselves out of the game. I’ve been doing dumb stuff. So it’s falling in the same trend as every other year. We had an in-depth meeting this week to basically get our sh*t together and start to turn around here.”
“Two weeks in a row of making rookie mistakes six years into the Cup? Need to be replaced,” Wallace later added.
Related: NASCAR’s Bubba Wallace Complains About Phoenix Track: ‘Really, Really F***in Hard’
Wallace’s Air Force Partnership
Wallace got better news back in January, when it was announced that the United States Air Force would become a primary sponsor for the No. 23 Toyota team and specifically for Wallace for multiple races in the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series.
“It’s really special to once again be partnered with the men and women who make up the United States Air Force,” Wallace said in a statement.
“My previous experience with the folks from the Air Force was awesome, and I had the chance to meet a lot of great Airmen who do some amazing things each and every day,” he added. “I’m looking forward to welcoming them to 23XI and showing them what we’re all about as we work together to try and accomplish the impossible.”
Lauletta commented on the partnership as well, saying, “The Air Force and 23XI recognize that teamwork is the most critical component in achieving success. We look forward to moving forward together to achieve our collective goals both on the track and in the broader community.”
It remains to be seen if the Air Force sticks with Wallace, or decides to ditch him like DoorDash did.