Lewis Hamilton Bags Toni Breidinger’s $6B Sponsor as Long-Time Red Bull Rival Withdraws Support

In motorsport, crossovers between different racing disciplines are rare but always exciting. Back in 2011, Formula 1 star Lewis Hamilton and NASCAR champion Tony Stewart swapped cars for a day at Watkins Glen. Hamilton, driving Stewart’s #14 Chevrolet, felt like a kid experiencing a new toy for the first time. Despite the drizzle that day, he put on a show, executing burnouts and pushing the stock car to its limits.

The experience left Hamilton thrilled. “That was fun, man! I just feel like a kid today,” he radioed after completing his run. That excitement never faded. Earlier this year, Hamilton hinted that he’d love to try NASCAR after his F1 career. While that possibility is still far off, Hamilton is already blurring the lines between the two motorsport worlds. The seven-time F1 champion has parted ways with Monster Energy, his longtime energy drink sponsor, to promote a longtime NASCAR sponsor energy drink brand.

Lewis Hamilton continues to embrace changes!

The year 2025 has been one of massive change for Lewis Hamilton. After spending more than a decade with Mercedes, he shocked the F1 world by signing with Ferrari. The switch was one of the biggest driver moves in modern F1 history. Hamilton now finds himself at the Scuderia alongside Charles Leclerc, aiming to add an eighth world championship to his legacy. But a change in teams wasn’t the only shift in Hamilton’s career.

The British driver also ended his long-time partnership with Monster Energy. This comes as a shock for many as the brand has been a loyal sponsor for Hamilton since 2017. Even in 2024, when Monster Energy signed McLaren as a team sponsor, it remained with Hamilton in a personal capacity. In 2017, when Monster Energy signed Lewis Hamilton, it also launched a special ‘44’ drink to honor his racing legacy. At that time, Hamilton had praised the brand, saying, “The Monster Energy brand culture and lifestyle really fits with my own, and I’m proud to be a part of the Monster family.”

But priorities change with time. With Ferrari already having a partnership with Celsius, Hamilton also joined forces with the energy drink giant. While this comes as a shock for many, in a highly competitive world, having one athlete represent two brands was simply not logical. Notably, Celsius is one of the fastest-growing energy drink brands in motorsport. While it made a name for itself in NASCAR, it expanded to Formula 1 in 2023 by partnering with Ferrari. The brand initially backed Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. But with Sainz moving to Williams in 2025 and Hamilton taking his seat, Celsius now has the seven-time F1 champion as its newest ambassador.

While Hamilton’s arrival strengthens Celsius’ presence in Formula 1, the brand has already been growing its NASCAR connections. Drivers like Corey LaJoie and AJ Allmendinger have been its longtime partners. Notably, the brand made waves in 2024 by signing ARCA driver Toni Breidinger. The partnership has been fruitful for the 25-year-old driver as she earned her full-time seat in Truck Series with Tricon Garage.

But what makes this partnership special for Breidinger is the Formula 1 connection. “F1 has a lot of hype around it right now, especially with the Netflix series and everything like that,” Breidinger said last year. With Lewis Hamilton on board, young drivers like Breidinger will have some serious opportunities to learn from the best. Also, a crossover could be in the cards, given Hamilton’s fondness for NASCAR and Celsius’s impact in both series.

However, this isn’t the only crossover we fans can rely on. In recent years, sponsors have started bridging the gap between the two series. One of the biggest examples is Red Bull, which has expanded its presence in NASCAR through a partnership with Trackhouse Racing. After exiting the sport a decade ago, in 2025, Red Bull made a comeback in NASCAR as a primary sponsor.

The energy drink brand will sponsor Shane van Gisbergen, a three-time Supercars champion, as he competes for NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year honors in the No. 88 Chevrolet. Red Bull will serve as his primary sponsor for five Cup Series races in Las Vegas, Daytona, Kansas, and others. Meanwhile, earlier this season, 18-year-old rising star Connor Zilisch made his debut in the Cup Series with Red Bull backing his No. 87 Chevrolet Camaro.

While the two racing disciplines remain fundamentally different, sponsorship deals like these are creating unexpected connections between them. The most important thing is that brands aren’t going only behind big names; they are also looking to back rising stars like Zilisch and Breidinger. As the first Arab American woman in NASCAR, Breidinger needs support like this to sustain herself in a sponsor-heavy sport.

Toni Breidinger reveals her biggest fear!

While Toni Breidinger is making headlines for her sponsorship with Celsius, her impact on NASCAR extends far beyond that. She is blazing a trail as the first Arab American woman to compete in a national NASCAR series. But with that success comes a deep sense of responsibility. While she’s proud of her achievement, she admits that one thing weighs on her mind the most.

“I carry it with a lot of respect, and it’s always cool to be the first. But I always say that I don’t want to be the last,” she said in an interview last month. That fear—the idea that no one else might follow in her footsteps—is what drives her to succeed. She wants to make sure that young girls watching her today believe they can be NASCAR drivers, too. However, she admits that the journey to the top of the sport is not easy, and it is what fuels her to perform.

“I wouldn’t say that the journey’s been easy by any means. But I feel like I’ve really learned to appreciate the challenges and just kind of trust the whole process,” she admitted. Despite the struggles, she has built a name for herself both on and off the track. With more than 50 ARCA race starts, she finished fourth in the 2024 standings. In 2025, she has been consistent by finishing both Truck races in the top 30 with her No.5 Toyota for TRICON Garage.

Apart from her racing career, Breidinger is also a very successful influencer and model. With 2.5 million Instagram followers, Breidinger has turned into a social media powerhouse. She has also made waves in the modeling world, working with brands like Victoria’s Secret and Sports Illustrated. As the 2025 season continues, Breidinger would like to continue her on-track success and make an entry into victory lane soon.