What Does Coca Cola’s Acquisition of Bodyarmor Mean for Ryan Blaney?
Sophia Edwards NASCAR driver Ryan Blaney will have personal and professional reasons to be deeply interested in Coca Cola’s acquisition of beverage brand Bodyarmor SuperDrink.
The beverage brand is not only Ryan Blaney’s paint scheme sponsor, but the driver is also reportedly a partner/shareholder in the company. Although his share in the company is unknown.
In 2018, Coca Cola had bought a 15% share in Bodyarmor. But on Monday, the multinational brand completed its ‘full control’ takeover reported to be worth $5.6B, the biggest acquisition deal in Coca Cola’s history.
With Blaney, Bodyarmor quickly overtook it’s competition in the market and currently sits only behind Pepsi’s Gatorade.
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MARTINSVILLE, VA – OCTOBER 27: Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards/Moen Ford, stands in the garage area during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series First Data 500 at Martinsville Speedway on October 27, 2018 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images)
In May, the beverage company announced their new product, EDGE, as part of a new paint scheme on Blaney’s car ahead of the race in Charlotte.
The brightly colored paint scheme was ideal for both the driver and the brand as the car stood out from the rest of the pack while also introducing BODYARMOR’s new product.
Blaney not the only sporting name in BODYARMOR’s team
Over the years, Blaney & BODYARMOR partnered on many such paint schemes, including a tribute to the legendary Kobe Bryant.
Bryant, who passed away in 2020, was a major cog in BODYARMOR’s journey, being one of its major shareholders.
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FONTANA, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 28: Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 BodyArmor Ford, drives a special Kobe Bryant tribute car at Auto Club Speedway on February 28, 2020 in Fontana, California. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)
In an interview with Heavy, Blaney spoke of the tribute scheme.
He said, “I’ve had a lot of great [schemes] and I really, personally, think that the Kobe car that we did at Fontana last year was probably by far my favorite.”
“That might be one of my favorite schemes of all time, any sponsor I’ve ever run.”
What’s next for Ryan Blaney?
Being a stakeholder in the company, Blaney will surely receive a handsome return on investment in the multi-billion dollar takeover. But one shouldn’t rule out that his Penske Ford might also be seen in the iconic red of Coca Cola, a win-win deal.
On the business end of things, currently in seventh place, Ryan Blaney failed to qualify for this season’s playoffs.
Will a change of paint scheme sponsor turn his fortunes around? We’ll see.
