Jesse Iwuji, Emmitt Smith join forces on Xfinity Series team
By Bob Pockrass
FOX Sports NASCAR Writer
The NASCAR industry is no stranger to football players being part of team ownership groups.
The players love the competition, and with the ability to leverage their celebrity to market a driver or team they like, they can help generate funding.
Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman, Roger Staubach, Dan Marino, Brett Favre and Randy Moss are among the former football stars who have owned race teams.
Coaches get into it, too, from Joe Gibbs as a successful team owner to former truck series driver Jerry Glanville competing.
Next up from the NFL: Emmitt Smith.
The former Cowboys running back has helped turn NASCAR driver Jesse Iwuji’s dream of a full-time NASCAR schedule into a reality, as Jesse Iwuji Motorsports will field a car for him in the Xfinity Series this year. Chevrolet is helping back the program, and Iwuji will be the only Black full-time driver in the series.
"I'm proud of this man," Smith said. "In order to go through the door and go through the fire, you got to be willing to do it.
"And he's built for it. I'm built for it."
'It's super easy to quit. I've never been a quitter' — Jesse Iwuji
Iwuji, a former defensive back at Navy, embarked on his racing career after completing his full-time military obligations. He still serves as an officer in the Navy Reserve.
A former football player with the odds of succeeding on the track stacked against him? And one with the opportunity to deliver a message about following dreams and bring more diversity and inclusion to the sport?
For Smith, it was sign me up.
"Jesse himself, people that you can hitch your wagon to and help support ... it makes a big difference," Smith said. "And so he created an opportunity for me to come in and be a part of it.
"And here I am."
Jesse Iwuji in the Xfinity Series
Iwuji hasn’t had it easy on the track, as he has tried to make it on limited experience and limited funding. He has an average finish of 27th in 19 starts across the NASCAR Xfinity Series and truck series the past four years. In 30 races in the ARCA West Series from 2016 to '18, he managed just one top-10 finish and didn’t lead a lap.
Self-funded and 34 years old, it might seem that Iwuji would be better off finding something else to do. But he's not about to do that.
"It’s super easy to quit," Iwuji said. "I've never been a quitter. God put a vision in my head of me being a race-car driver. So if he puts it in my head, that means it's meant to be, and if it's meant to be, why would I go against it?"
Iwuji likes to note that many successful people had "way bigger fails than I’ve ever had" before becoming successful.
"If you have a vision and you clearly see yourself becoming whatever is supposed to become, then it is your duty to go after that," he said.
"No matter what happens, no matter what you lose, no matter what happens to you, no matter how far down the hole you go, you must go after it because there is something in the end, like the light is at the end of the tunnel."
Jesse Iwuji on Emmitt Smith
Smith indicated that he has realistic expectations for this foray into racing. He has sponsored Iwuji for previous races through his Notable Live app, and the team has some sponsorship from Equity Prime Mortgage in addition to Chevrolet. But they don’t have the depth of people or funding of the top teams such as Joe Gibbs Racing, JR Motorsports and Kaulig Racing.
"We have to finish races and do that on a consistent basis," Smith said. "And as he gets more comfortable around the car, and the crew gets comfortable with him, then we'll see where we are.
"And I'm sure if there's an opportunity for us to fly to the top, we're going to fly to the top. So I'm excited about where we are."
Having worked the past six months to put together a team, the organization will be temporarily based at JD Motorsports in South Carolina. The team will carry the No. 34, which was the number of Wendell Scott, the first Black driver to win in the NASCAR Cup Series and the only one for 58 years until Bubba Wallace won last year at Talladega.
By carrying the number of Scott, Iwuji and Smith pay tribute to those who came before them and send the message that they will now try to pay it forward.
"We share the same visions," Iwuji said. "Our goal this season is to not only perform on track but also utilize what we have with this platform of being a race team in NASCAR, utilizing this platform to help inspire others and give opportunities to others.
"And help inspire those who maybe have never thought that they would have a chance to even have an opportunity in this world."
After all, Iwuji never thought his chance would come via a Pro Football Hall of Fame running back.
"Working with Emmitt has been pretty awesome," he said. "He's a legend. Growing up, I always looked up to him as a Cowboys running back because I played that position when I was in middle school before I moved to playing defense.
"And now being able to work with him 20-plus years later has been just absolutely incredible."
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Thinking out loud
NASCAR's decision to try to make a "replica" of the winning Daytona 500 car so it can continue a tradition with its track tours is a serviceable answer to a dilemma.
With the shortage of cars, a team shouldn’t be asked to give up the car it used to win the Daytona 500. But the track has traditionally paid the winner $100,000 as part of the purse to rent the car for a year and use it as the cornerstone ending piece — confetti and all — for tours of the racetrack. Fans know that when they go visit, they’ll see the car.
NASCAR’s answer? It will scan the winner’s car — confetti included — and then wrap one of the cars used for testing in the paint scheme of the winner. It will also place the confetti in the appropriate spots. That life-sized replica will work as the museum piece for the year.
This seems like a lot of work. But visitors will get to take photos with a car that looks like the winning car, even if it’s not the real thing. That certainly is better than nothing.
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They said it
"It’s not as simple or as easy as we’re accustomed to because there are so many rules. I ask questions about it, like, ‘Can we do this? Can we do this? Can we do this?’ And they’re like, ‘No, you can’t. No, you can’t. No, you can’t.’" — Kyle Busch on asking his crew chief which adjustments are allowed under Next Gen rules
Bob Pockrass has spent decades covering motorsports, including the past 30 Daytona 500s. He joined FOX Sports in 2019 following stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @bobpockrass. Looking for more NASCAR content? Sign up for the FOX Sports NASCAR Newsletter with Bob Pockrass!
Jesse Iwuji Motorsports
