The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) announced on Friday that the company has launched digital collectibles for this year’s Daytona 500. NASCAR’s limited-edition Daytona 500 NFT drops are part of a collaboration with the Wax blockchain team.
NASCAR Announces the 2022 Daytona 500 NFT Collection
NASCAR intends to issue non-fungible token (NFT) collectibles for the Daytona 500, with 500 ticket holders receiving one NFT per wallet. Prior to the event’s launch, the stock car racing company notified 25,000 Daytona 500 ticket holders via email.
According to a press release, ticket holders had 24 hours to sign up for a Wax blockchain wallet in order to participate in the contest. “500 NFT winners were automatically entered into a drawing to win one of five autographed NASCAR driver helmets,” said a representative in an interview.
On February 16, the stock car racing company announced the official launch of digital collectibles. NASCAR stated that it chose Wax to “ensure that as many people as possible could participate in the fun of this history-making event.”
In addition, NASCAR stated that the Wax blockchain network is “certified carbon neutral by ClimateCare and uses 220,000x less energy than its competitors.” Wax previously worked with Topps, Hasbro, Mattel, and Funko in addition to NASCAR. Last year, Fox received approximately 4.83 million viewers for its Daytona 500 broadcast, which was less than the 7.33 million viewers who watched the race in 2020.
“There’s unprecedented excitement heading into the 2022 Daytona 500, and we want to thank our fans for their continued dedication to the sport by gifting ticket holders with a free digital collectible to commemorate the Great American Race,” NASCAR’s chief digital officer, Tim Clark, said in an interview. The NASCAR executive went on to say, “Fans want to interact with brands in new and unique ways, and this is another step in that process.”
The Commemorative NFT Tickets for the NASCAR Daytona 500 follow the Commemorative NFT Tickets for the Super Bowl.
The decision to give NASCAR Daytona 500 ticket holders NFTs follows the NFL and Ticketmaster’s decision to give Super Bowl ticket holders NFTs. The NFL provided fans with virtual commemorative tickets, allowing them to remember Super Bowl LVI for the rest of their lives.
According to NASCAR’s announcement, “the Super Bowl has nothing on the World Center of Racing.” Furthermore, Wax CEO William Quigley stated that “the Wax blockchain is the only chain fast enough to keep up with NASCAR.”
The collaboration between Wax blockchain and NASCAR comes on the heels of the stock car racing company’s NFTs with Candy Digital. Candy announced last week that it would be launching 23 NASCAR Cup Series vehicles called “Candy Racing Digi Casts” in collaboration with Race Team Alliance.
Disclaimer: These are the writer’s opinions and should not be considered investment advice. Readers should do their own research.