NASCAR: Late sponsor replacement confirmed for Chase Elliott

Hooters entered its eighth year with Hendrick Motorsports and Chase Elliott with plans to serve as the primary sponsor of the No. 9 Chevrolet in three NASCAR Cup Series races.

Unfortunately, only two of those races took place before the restaurant chain and Rick Hendrick's team were ultimately forced to cut ties. Hooters was unable to meet its sponsorship obligations for the 2024 season, leading to the early breakup.

The company's logo was removed from Elliott's car at Nashville Superspeedway in late June, and it was also removed from the partners page on the Hendrick Motorsports website around the same time.

Elliott's No. 9 car gets a new look for Richmond race

Elliott competed with sponsorship from Hooters at Atlanta Motor Speedway, which is both his and the company's home race track, back in February, and then again at Texas Motor Speedway in April.

The 28-year-old Dawsonville, Georgia native won at Texas, netting Hooters its first Cup Series win as a primary sponsor since the late Alan Kulwicki earned what would be his last victory at Pocono Raceway en route to winning the championship in 1992.

Prior to Hendrick Motorsports and Hooters cutting ties, Hooters was also set to sponsor Elliott's No. 9 Chevrolet in this coming Sunday night's Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway, the first race back from the three-week break in the action due to NBC's coverage of the Summer Olympics in Paris, France.

But with Hooters out, Coca-Cola is set to take over as the primary sponsor of Elliott's car in this 400-lap race around the four-turn, 0.75-mile (1.207-kilometer) Richmond, Virginia oval.

Elliott joined the Coca-Cola Racing Family before the 2023 season, making him the iconic brand's first new addition since 2018. The Coca-Cola Family also includes Richard Childress Racing's Austin Dillon, Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin, Team Penske's Joey Logano, and Trackhouse Racing Team's Daniel Suarez.

Sunday's Cook Out 400 is set to be broadcast live on USA Network from Richmond Raceway beginning at 6:00 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss the first NASCAR Cup Series race in three weeks!