The Jolly Roger colors will be flying this weekend in the Arizona desert on Scott Speed’s No. 95 Ford Fusion.
Racing fans and potential sponsors alike won’t be seeing a mirage when Speed drives the all-black Ford with the white skull and crossbones from Leavine Family Racing. Across the back of the new Generation-6 race car will be the words: “Surrender the Sponsor.”
The race team is trying to build on the momentum of a 23rd-place finish at the season-opening Daytona 500. Part of that process is the continued search for a primary sponsor.
“It is exciting just to see the hype about the No. 95,” Speed said. “We are not trying to make this a money stunt; we’re just trying to draw attention to our car. Hopefully, a potential sponsor will see this and want to be teamed up with us.
“There is no way I could have pulled off this paint scheme with any other team, which is why it was so appropriate for LFR – they are up for anything.”
The nearest ocean may be 357 miles away, but it won’t keep LFR from living a pirate’s life during Sunday’s Subway Fresh Fit 500 at the Phoenix International Raceway.
The idea was a collaborative effort between Speed and crew chief Wally Rogers. Team owner Bob Leavine quickly signed off on the idea.
“The reality is, anything that brings attention to our race team is positive,” Leavine said. “It’s not a stunt. It’s a way for Corporate America to see what this little team from Texas can do.”
“We’re still looking for partners,” vice president of marketing Terance Mathis said. “DISH was a great partner for us at Daytona, but they’re not on for the full season. We’re getting to the point where we’ve got to be strategic with how we use our resources and continue to run as well as we can and attract more sponsorship.”
Speed raced his way into the starting lineup for the Daytona 500, and he followed that up with a lead-lap finish.
“The minute we got back to the shop, our attention shifted from Daytona to Phoenix,” Rogers said. “We’re confident about our race car for that track, and we’re confident about Scott. We thought it would be a great idea to work on the sponsorship side. It was an interesting idea and it probably wouldn’t fly with a lot of other race teams. That’s what makes LFR so unique.”
Speed agreed. “Daytona was a good start, but we have so much more to do,” he said. “We will improve on that. It is our hope the ‘Surrender the Sponsor’ idea will attract a sponsor excited to come along for the ride for the other 25 races we’ve selected this year.”
In six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Phoenix, Speed qualified second in 2010 with Red Bull Racing. He also has two Nationwide and one Camping World Truck series start at the one-mile D-shaped oval. But none in a four-wheeled pirate ship.
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