MOORESVILLE, N.C. (April 29, 2026) – Defense Unicorns, the leader in airgap-native software delivery, and a veteran-founded military defense technology provider, will join forces with Spire Motorsports and Michael McDowell for the NASCAR Cup Series’ inaugural visit to the streets of Naval Base Coronado in San Diego, Calif.
To commemorate its maiden voyage in NASCAR’s premier division and celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America, McDowell’s No. 71 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 will sport a vibrant livery featuring “Doug” The Defense Unicorn.
“Defense Unicorns was built by veterans for the mission, and sponsoring Michael McDowell in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Naval Base Coronado is our way of showing up for the people who make that mission possible and saying thank you,” said Dr. Rob Slaughter, CEO of Defense Unicorns. “NASCAR is America’s sport, born from grit, built on speed, and beloved by the communities that produce our warfighters. We build alongside our warfighters, and events like this remind us exactly who we’re building for.”
Founded in 2021, the San Antonio-headquartered organization took the preliminary steps for its cornerstone Unicorn Delivery Service (UDS), delivering essential software in mission-critical environments from submarines and forward operating bases to aircraft carriers and space systems.
Defense Unicorn’s UDS is a secure, portable platform, purpose-built for delivering software to military systems. UDS includes the essential tools to package, deploy, monitor, and sustain mission applications.
Built for versatility and efficiency, the “package once; deploy anywhere” philosophy is paramount for the success of military mission environments, supporting multiple cloud providers and systems.
Defense Unicorn’s credibility has translated into landmark contract wins, including a $300 million GSA contract, a $1 billion Space RCO contract, and a role in the approximately $140 billion Golden Dome initiative.
The company’s single largest customer engagement is a $100 million task order under the GSA contract with the U.S. Navy, underscoring the depth of trust warfighters are placing in the platform.
“I’m thrilled to represent Defense Unicorns in San Diego at Naval Base Coronado,” said McDowell. “It’s going to be a unique race weekend, something like we have never seen before. My appreciation for the military and its systems is something I take seriously and what better place to represent this important platform than Coronado? I am really looking forward to getting out there and having a good run. We had a lot of speed at the Chicago Street Race last year, and that is really our closest comparison, in terms of a venue. I can confidently say our road course program is constantly improving and San Diego is a track that we have circled for a win.”
In January, Defense Unicorns achieved a milestone $1 billion+ valuation, officially becoming a true “unicorn” company, guided by the support of Bain Capital and its $136 million Series B investment.
Leading into race weekend, the company will host Warhacker, a first-of-its-kind Hackathon in San Diego, with the mission to bring together government, industry, academia, and non-profit companies to build, package, and deploy software solutions to warfighter problems. Applications are open now, and the event will be held June 16-19.
The NASCAR Cup Series’ inaugural race from Naval Base Coronado will be televised live on Amazon Prime and HBO Max on Sunday, June 21 beginning at 4 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The 17th of 36 points-paying races on the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule will also be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Channel 90.
About Defense Unicorns…
Defense Unicorns is a veteran-owned defense technology company founded in 2021 by Rob Slaughter, Jeff McCoy, and Andrew Greene to make software a strategic deterrent for the U.S. Department of War. The company builds open-source, airgap-native technologies that enable the secure development, delivery, and sustainment of mission software across cloud, on-premises, and tactical edge environments. Defense Unicorns’ technology is trusted by the operators of some of the most critical systems in the world, including the U.S. Navy, Army, Air Force, and Space Force. Learn more at https://defenseunicorns.com.
About Spire Motorsports …
Spire Motorsports fields full-time entries in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing.
The team, co-owned by longtime NASCAR industry executive Jeff Dickerson and TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss, earned its inaugural NASCAR Cup Series victory in its first full season of competition when Justin Haley took the checkered flag in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway July 7, 2019. Less than three years later, William Byron drove Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado to its inaugural NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win April 7, 2022, at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The team’s most recent win came April 27, 2026, when Carson Hocevar earned his inaugural Cup Series win in the Jack Links 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.
In 2026, Spire Motorsports campaigns the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NASCAR Cup Series and the Nos. 7 and 77 Chevrolet Silverado RSTs in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The Mooresville, N.C., organization will also field the No. 77 410 sprint car in Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing competition.
