In a move that was first reported by the Sports Business Journal’s Adam Stern, Axalta Racing will be sponsoring the No. 41 Jason Johnson Racing entry in the 2019 Knoxville Nationals.
Stern reported that former NASCAR superstar Jeff Gordon – who was sponsored by the company under the name DuPont – gave the push to get the familiar colors on the car.
Heeding advice from @JeffGordonWeb, @Axalta this week will announce that it will sponsor Jason Johnson Racing's No. 41 car driven by @DavidGravel in next month’s Knoxville Nationals:
➖ Terms not disclosed, but industry execs say such a pact would typically cost around $50K. pic.twitter.com/TGTHt2PEyi
— Adam Stern (@A_S12) July 22, 2019
David Gravel will be behind the wheel of the car, as he has been in each race of this year’s World of Outlaws Season.
Gravel currently sits in third place in the Outlaws points, corralling four wins and 23 top five’s in 41 races this year.
He finished 10th at the 2018 Knoxville Nationals driving for CJB Motorsports.
Although, the No. 41 has historically been fast at Knoxville.
In 2016, Jason Johnson broke Donny Schatz’ five-year streak by holding off the No. 15 to take home the title.
After Johnson passed away in an accident in 2018, Carson Macedo raced the No. 41 car at Knoxville, finishing sixth.
Gravel will be racing for his first Knoxville Nationals championship, trying to upset Schatz, Kraig Kinser and 2018 champ Brad Sweet. The trio are the only active World of Outlaws drivers to win the Nationals, an event that pays $10,000 to start the A-Main and $150,000 to win.
The NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals will take place in the second week of August (Wednesday Aug. 7 – Saturday Aug. 11) to conclude the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series’ month of money. For all Last Word On Sports’ coverage of the month, go to our Month of Money Headquarters for daily updates and articles concerning the month.
For more general sprint car coverage, give us a follow on twitter at @RacingVault.
The series will return to the track on Tuesday at Lernerville Speedway for the $25,000-to-win Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup. Hot laps are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m.
