When Danica Patrick’s Former Sponsor Made a Volatile Michael Jordan Analogy Amid Feud With the NASCAR Driver

In the 2016 NASCAR Cup season, Danica Patrick was competing for Stewart-Haas Racing. Of course, every NASCAR driver needs a sponsor for them to race in every event. For that year, Nature’s Bakery struck a deal with SHR and Patrick. However, as the season progressed, the sponsor grew agitated with the #10 driver. This was because she was promoting a nutritional supplement company instead of their own brand.

According to the bakery company, this was a breach of their agreement with Stewart-Haas Racing. They even terminated their contract with immediate effect, prompting the team to sue them.

However, Nature’s Bakery counter-sued the organization. They claimed that the team did not inform them of a personal deal between Patrick and Six Star Nutrition.

The suit said, “It was as if Michael Jordan decided to wear Adidas while being paid by Nike.”

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What else did the company say about Danica Patrick?

Other accusations said that the driver was not doing her part to promote their company. As per their findings, Danica Patrick used the Nature’s Bakery name 46 times across all her social media channels. In fact, the last time it featured on her social media was in the month of June.

When they inked the deal, the brand marketed itself as suitable for Patrick’s healthy lifestyle. What made the company all the more upset was that they had invested $15 million and were “promised” a four-fold return. On the SHR front, they alleged that the company owed them over $30 million in payments for 2017 and 2018.

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Stewart-Haas’ lawsuit came after Nature’s Bakery ended the agreement prematurely.

On the other hand, the sponsor claimed that they figured that the partnership would not work, six months into the agreement. Their main gripe was that Danica Patrick was not performing her duties as a product ambassador. Soon after the ugly feud, Aspen Dental stepped in as Patrick’s “lead sponsor” for the season.