TORRANCE, Calif. (Sept. 15, 2016) – On the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit, Carl Edwards is known as an aggressive and very successful driver. He’s also an accomplished pilot, flying his own plane to and from races. This coming Sunday, fans can watch him take a lap as an actor too. Edwards makes a cameo appearance in a new Toyota commercial that will debut Sunday during NBC Sports Network’s live national broadcast of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400 from Chicagoland Raceway in Joliet, Ill. The race kicks off this year’s NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.
The broadcast spot, “Tailgating” (https://youtu.be/XvP62t5DwVw), was shot this summer at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. It features Edwards interacting with tailgating race fans and is part of Toyota’s second sports-themed broadcast campaign.
“Much like racing, acting is an adventure. Toyota has some of the most creative campaigns and I’m fortunate to be included for this year’s ‘Tailgating’ spot,” said Edwards. “I don’t want to give away any secrets, but this commercial in particular is really great for me because it features one of my signature moves, and I get to watch somebody else do it. It was a lot of fun to be a part of.”
Sports offer some of life’s greatest experiences, whether you’re an athlete or a spectator. Toyota’s latest sports campaign showcases moments that bring people together, celebrating teamwork, compassion and role models.
The first spots in the 2016 Toyota sports campaign made their debut earlier this month on Sunday Night Football broadcasts. They focus on human connections and relationships through sports, including fathers and sons, co-parents and longtime friends, and feature Toyota vehicles, including Camry, Tundra, Highlander, and RAV4.
“Toyota’s second-generation sports campaign was a blast for us to work on,” said Jack Hollis, group vice president, marketing, Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. “Watching Carl interact with his loyal fans was both meaningful and fun, exactly the way sports should be.”
For the second year Toyota released FanMojis, a series of sports emojis, available through a free IOS application. FanMojis are great for text messages and on a variety of social media platforms for Edwards and fellow Sprint Cup drivers Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Martin Truex, Jr. with fun race car paint FanMojis. In addition to the NASCAR emojis, there are FanMojis for football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer.
The TV campaign and FanMojis were produced by Saatchi & Saatchi LA, Toyota’s advertising agency of record.
Edwards also appears on the cover of the recently-released “NASCAR Heat Evolution” video game. Featuring over 40 drivers, all 23 licensed NASCAR Sprint Cup Series tracks, and a variety of gameplay modes. NASCAR Heat Evolution is the first authentic NASCAR game for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
NASCAR Heat Evolution is produced by Dusenberry Martin Racing.
