November 15, 1992: It was a day that rewrote NASCAR forever. As the Winston Cup Series championship race came to an end, Bill Elliott extended his hand from his No. 11 Budweiser Ford’s window to celebrate. However, a quietly calculative Alan Kulwicki had pulled off the impossible already…

In a race that was originally supposed to be known as seven-time Cup Series champion Richard Petty’s last, what instead got audiences banging their chest was a then 37-year-old Hooters-sponsored Kulwicki emerging victorious among six racers mathematically eligible to win the championship. So how did he pull it off? After experiencing the lowest of lows.

On September 20 that year, the driver had experienced an unceremonious crash at Dover International Speedway finishing 34th despite winning the pole—putting a massive 248 points difference between him and points leader Elliott, with six races remaining. But Kulwicki was not one to give up at all. As per his then car chief Tony Gibson, “We had been through so many things, and then we wrecked at Dover. Alan got everybody in the truck before we left. He said, ‘Promise me one thing—that you won’t give up. I won’t give up on you if you won’t give up on me. Let’s fight to the end.’ I’ll never forget Alan telling us that in the hauler that day.”

The monologue most definitely worked, as the team finished no lower than 12th in the next few races. By the time they reached the Atlanta Motor Speedway for the final showdown, that difference had been brought down to 30 points. Slowly and surely, Kulwicki started inching toward the top during the 1992 Hooters 500. While the racer most definitely wanted to finish first with speed and perfectly executed pit strategies, at the back of his mind was also another plan: Pursue the five-point bonus going to the driver leading the most laps.

“Somebody pointed out to me during the race that Alan was in the car calculating,” Kulwicki-owned AK Racing’s general manager Cal Lawson stated. Well, looks like all the counting and calculating paid off in the end, as he led 103 laps as opposed to Elliott’s 102—winning the championship by 10 points. Immediately after, Kulwicki launched what would be his second time attempting what he called the Polish Victory Lap, cementing his—before an untimely aviation crash took his life the next summer—and his sponsor Hooters’ legacy into the NASCAR legacy forever. But, exactly, 32 years later, people saw Kulwicki again…

…as a memory becoming reality. When Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott broke his 42-race winless streak at Texas Motor Speedway in April 2024, he had all the elements likening him to Kulwicki: A Hooters sponsorship, an iconic Hooters victory, and a Polish Victory Lap. After the No. 9 took the longtime NASCAR sponsor to Victory Lane for the first time in over three decades, he wanted to make it special.

“It’s been a dream of mine to pay respect to the late Alan Kulwicki,” the 2020 Cup Series champion noted, before adding, “Driving this car to a victory and being able to do a Polish Victory lap. Really crazy how things came full circle there in that moment. It was pretty emotional to me; he beat Dad [Bill Elliott] back in the day, and here we are, sharing his sponsor. I couldn’t be more grateful for the journey.”

Unfortunately, though, that was the final time Hooters would reach the annals of glory in stock car racing.

Three months later, the restaurant chain would leave NASCAR and Hendrick Motorsports for good. As whispers of Hooters’ bankruptcy grew louder, fans and industrialists assumed the potential fallout—both on and off the track. Many wondered whether the brand will find its way to recovery or become another casualty of economic uncertainty. A recent Bloomberg report revealed the details behind the decline of Hooters and what lies in their future.

The partnership between Hooters, Chase Elliott, and Hendrick Motorsports stopped overnight. The restaurant chain had a good sponsorship since 2017, but could not pay its way financially, leaving Hendrick Motorsports with no choice but to cut ties in 2024. To settle unpaid sponsorship fees of over $1.7 million, Hendrick Motorsports even filed a lawsuit against the organization that same year. The termination of their contract also drastically impacted the NASCAR race schedule, as Hooters already sponsored two NASCAR races and had one remaining at Richmond Raceway.

Bloomberg recently reported that the iconic restaurant chain is now engaged with creditors and has employed the law firm Ropes & Gray to assist in preparation for a possible bankruptcy filing within the coming months. The move is to assist Hooters in restructuring business through the bankruptcy court. The plans are not yet finalized, but should they go ahead, the court proceedings are likely to commence in the next couple of months. But how did they end up here?

Hooters are in a deep well of trouble financially. This includes a debt of approximately $300 million, reported in September 2024, from the asset-backed bonds issued in 2021. They even sought out debt advice in 2024 from Houlihan Lokey Inc. according to the report. However, none of the parties chose to comment on the situation.

Going ahead, the steps involved the closure of around 40 underperforming locations across the U.S. places such as Rhode Island, Virginia, Florida, Kentucky, and Texas. 

Having said that, taking the route to bankruptcy like Red Lobster or TGI Fridays may allow Hooters to become a stronger entity after the restructuring of its operations. Unfortunately, casual dining chains have been facing issues over recent years, with increased prices and lower footfall.

Although the Hooters and Chase Elliott partnership ended abruptly, a new sponsor stepped up, allowing him to continue his pursuit of destiny. 

Who stepped in for the No. 9 Chevrolet? 

It was in August 2024 when the announcement came that Coca-Cola would take over the primary sponsor role for Chase Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet at the Richmond Raceway. Whereas going ahead, in the current season and till 2027 to come, Amazon Prime Video partnered with Hendrick Motorsports as a primary sponsor for Elliott. 

As Stacey Rosenson, the head of U.S. Sports Marketing, at Prime Video, expressed, “We’re thrilled to work with Hendrick Motorsports and Chase as we begin our NASCAR coverage in 2025. It represents an exciting extension of our new NASCAR relationship. Chase is a wildly popular, championship-winning driver, and we can’t wait to see the No. 9 Prime Video team in action as we approach our streaming debut.” The 2020 Cup Series Champion is a seven-time winner of the Most Popular Driver award and is sure to bring a lot of eyes to Prime Video. Especially considering, they will be broadcasting select races in 2025.

Even Rick Hendrick expressed his happiness over the commencement of this new partnership as he stated, “Welcoming Prime Video to our team is a proud moment, They’ve committed to our sport in a big way and are taking an innovative approach to delivering world-class broadcasts and content to our fans. Hendrick Motorsports is ready to support their efforts, and we look forward to building something special together over the next three years.” 

Prime Video will sponsor three primary races annually and as an associate sponsorship each year. In 2025, they will debut the sponsorship for the No. 9 Chevrolet on April 27 at the Talladega Superspeedway, with Kansas Speedway on May 11 and the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway on May 18. Are you excited to see Prime Video on Chase Elliot’s car? Or are you one who misses the Hooters era? Let us know in the comments below!