Speed Energy

From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

Speed Energy
Company typePrivate
IndustryDrink industry
Founded2010
FoundersRobby Gordon
Steven Nichols
ProductsEnergy drink
OwnersRobby Gordon
Websitespeedenergy.com

Speed Energy, officially branded as SPEED Energy, is an energy drink produced by American racing driver Robby Gordon. Created in 2010 to support his Robby Gordon Motorsports team in NASCAR, Speed sponsors Gordon's Stadium Super Trucks series and his off-road racing program.

The energy drink is part of a range of brands owned by Gordon under the Speed name.

History

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Robby Gordon's Speed Energy-sponsored NASCAR car at Infineon Raceway in 2011

During his NASCAR career, Gordon regularly raced with sponsorship from energy drinks like Red Bull and Monster Energy. In October 2010, he founded Speed Energy as a means to generate funding for his financially struggling Robby Gordon Motorsports team. The brand appeared on Gordon's No. 7 car at that month's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway.[1] During RGM's operation, other NASCAR drivers to raced with Speed colors include Scott Wimmer, P. J. Jones, and Reed Sorenson.[2][3] In 2012, Eddie Sharp Racing driver Justin Lofton competed in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with Speed Energy sponsorship.[4] Speed has also sponsored Gordon's off-road racing efforts beginning with the Baja 1000 in November 2010;[5] later off-road races like the Dakar Rally saw Gordon compete under the Team SPEED banner.[6]

In November 2010, Gordon was sued by Specialized Bicycle Components on the claim that Speed Energy's S-shaped logo too closely resembled Specialized's; the lawsuit was dropped in December after Gordon assured he would modify his logo and recall any cans with the logo.[7][8]

Gordon quietly retired from NASCAR competition after 2012 and formed the Stadium Super Trucks series. In 2014, Speed Energy shared series title sponsorship with Traxxas as SST became "Speed Energy Formula Off-Road presented by Traxxas".[9] When SST split into American and Australian championships in 2020, the former became the Speed Energy Stadium Super Trucks.[10]

In addition to Speed Energy, Gordon established various companies under the Speed banner like the utility vehicle manufacturer Speed UTV, remote-control off-road truck brand Speed RC Cars, and racing tool maker Speed Tools.[11] Speed UTV, whose vehicles feature inspiration from Gordon's racing career such as the Indy Racing League and SST, is led by Todd Romano and Gordon's former engine builder Tony Cola.[12][13][14] Speed RC Cars has also appeared as a sponsor in SST for drivers like Gordon's son Max.[15]

Flavors

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Gordon's Speed Energy Stadium Super Truck at Road America in 2019

Promoted as a "vitamin energy drink", Speed Energy consists of five flavors:[16]

  • Fuel (citrus)
  • Unleaded (non-calorie and -carbohydrate)
  • Octane (candy)
  • Ethanol (mixture of Fuel and Octane flavors)
  • Black Tea Lemonade

References

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  1. ^ "Robby Gordon creates energy drink". ESPN.com. AP. October 29, 2010. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  2. ^ Beard, Brock (June 27, 2011). "CUP: P.J. Jones Gets Dodge Its First Cup Last-Place Finish of 2011 at Infineon". LASTCAR. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  3. ^ Beard, Brock (October 9, 2011). "CUP: Yeley First Driver To Sweep Weekend's Last-Place Finishes Since Blaney in 2009". LASTCAR. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  4. ^ "Lofton picks up new partners". Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 16, 2012. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  5. ^ "Robby Gordon to be fueled by Speed Energy at the Baja 1000". Robby Gordon. November 11, 2010. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  6. ^ Bonkowski, Jerry (December 13, 2018). "He's back: Robby Gordon to return to Dakar Rally next month after two-year hiatus". NBC Sports. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  7. ^ "Judge Forces Robby Gordon To Remove Logos From Energy Drink". Sports Business Daily. Advance Publications. November 19, 2010. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  8. ^ "Robby Gordon Settles His Dispute With Specialized, Alters Logo". Sports Business Daily. Advance Publications. December 23, 2010. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  9. ^ "SST Trucks To Race In Rebranded SPEED Energy Formula Off-Road Presented By Traxxas". Stadium Super Trucks. March 4, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2014.
  10. ^ Nguyen, Justin (November 21, 2019). "2020 Stadium Super Trucks schedule revealed". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
  11. ^ Gordon, Robby (July 27, 2020). "308 - Robby Gordon: Don't Get Even, Get Ahead!". Dirty Mo Media (Interview). Interviewed by The Dale Jr. Download. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  12. ^ Krywult, Sebastian (July 22, 2020). "Speed UTV Warranty Options and Presentation 18 Recap". UTV Underground. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  13. ^ Krywult, Sebastian (May 27, 2020). "Speed UTV Turbo Design & Latest Updates". UTV Underground. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  14. ^ "Design Presentation: 40" (PDF). Speed UTV. December 23, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  15. ^ Nguyen, Justin (August 5, 2020). "Max Gordon making SST debut at Road America". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  16. ^ "SPEED Energy Drink® Vitamin Energy Drink Products". Speed Energy. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
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