Justin Ashley may be new to the Top Fuel class, but that hasn’t stopped him from successfully pursuing marketing partners to join his Davis Motorsports team.
Days ahead of the Lucas Oil NHRA Summernationals, the second event in the NHRA’s pandemic-delayed season, Ashley revealed his Strutmaster.com-sponsored dragster is welcoming a new associate sponsor, Menards – for the rest of the 2020 season.
“I’m very grateful to be racing this weekend and the rest of the 2020 season with Menards,” Ashley said. “The Menards chain of home improvement stores has a storied history of success delivering great products at great prices for their customers. “I’m proud to be a part of the Menards team, and I’m excited about the program we’ve put together with them.”
Ashley, who is considered a front-runner in the NHRA’s Auto Club Road To the Future award this season, enters the event in the top 10 amongst the best Top Fuel racers in the world. He has reached the quarter-finals in two of the three races contested this season.
“I’m a rookie driver, and we’re a new team to the class. I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing though. We have a fresh perspective on everything from how we run our program through sponsorship and marketing partnerships.” Ashley explained. “We’re focused on getting our sponsors both a branding and a revenue return on their investment. I’ve always loved business; in fact, it was my major in college. I love driving 300 miles per hour, but I also love the business side of the sport, and I feel like we are starting to get traction there.
Ashley expects a good outing from the Davis Motorsports entry which lends well to this weekend’s Menard’s debut.
“I’m really psyched for this weekend and to have Menards on board. My goal is to put them, Strutmasters and the rest of our marketing partners in the winner’s circle on Sunday.”
This story was originally published on July 18, 2020. 
