Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels created headlines this week by sending a cease-and-desist letter to his former college team, the LSU Tigers, over giving the No. 5 jersey to cornerback DJ Pickett. That’s led to widespread criticism of Daniels and now some mockery from the NASCAR world.
Top NASCAR prospect Corey Heim, who will be replacing full-time next season in the Cup Series, is racing in Friday night’s Truck Series race at Richmond Raceway. Ahead of the Black’s Tire 250, Heim’s team took a little swipe at the Commanders’ quarterback.
The TRICON Garage announced on X that Heim would drive the No. 4 truck tonight, instead of the customary No. 5 as listed on the Truck Series entry list tonight, “out of respect” for Daniels.
It’s a great way for the NASCAR Truck Series team to get in on the running joke, another example of NASCAR social media teams seizing on something that’s trending to generate some buzz and engagement.
We also can’t help but mention a bit of the ties that can be made between all this. Daniels is the face of the franchise for the Commanders, who famously used to be coached by Joe Gibbs. The owner of Joe Gibbs Racing delivered three Super Bowl titles to Washington and won NFL Coach of the Year twice, earning himself a spot in both the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Washington Commanders Ring of Fame.
Heim, arguably the future face of NASCAR on the Toyota side, has never raced for Joe Gibbs Racing. That seemingly has a lot to do with the fact that he has had an on-track rivalry with Ty Gibbs, Joe’s grandson.
Tricon is partnered with Toyota and some have wondered if Heim has been prevented from racing with JGR because of his rivalry with the Gibbs’ grandson. Perhaps a subtle shot like this at the Commanders’ quarterback isn’t taken if Heim is a JGR development driver. Fortunately, his future at 23XI Racing meant Tricon could send out a tweet like this.
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