HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (March 8, 2016) – Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) and Juniper Networks, the industry leader in network innovation, announced today an eight race sponsorship, beginning this weekend at Phoenix International Raceway, on the No. 19 Toyota Camry driven by 2015 NASCAR XFINITY Series Rookie of the Year Daniel Suárez.
“We’re thrilled to extend our relationship with Joe Gibbs Racing into the 2016 season,” said Mike Marcellin, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Juniper Networks. “With Juniper Networks gear now being utilized in JGR’s North Carolina headquarters and trackside each weekend, the cutting edge team now has Juniper switching and security solutions up and running to ensure critical data flows through their network smoothly as they chase their next race victory.”
Through its sponsorship with JGR, Juniper Networks and their Elite partner Structured Communications, Inc. have helped to improve the racing organization’s network infrastructure for better performance on and off the track through Juniper Networks’ next-generation switching and security solutions, including several key components of the Juniper Networks® MetaFabric™ architecture. From analyzing car-performance data to providing real-time feedback to the crew chiefs and ensuring a reliable connection to the driver, JGR’s network will blend on-track with off-track capabilities. Find out more about Juniper Networks’ sponsorship with JGR in their blog, “The Need For Speed: Joe Gibbs Racing And Juniper Networks Team Up To Win.”
“Juniper Networks has helped our core network infrastructure, which has led to a drastic increase in speed and reliability of data transfer across our servers,” said Jim Foley, Chief Technology Officer at Joe Gibbs Racing. “In addition to the improvements at the race shop, Juniper Networks has also helped advance our performance at the race track by allowing our crew chiefs and engineers to receive real-time data quicker than ever before. It’s been a great partnership and really taken our technology capabilities to a championship-winning level across the board.”
Suárez has 38-career starts in the XFINITY Series over three seasons. He has earned three pole starting positions, nine top-five finishes, 21 top-10 finishes and led 83 laps with an average start of 8.1 and average finish of 11.5.
“I’m really excited to have Juniper Networks join us again for the 2016 season,” said Suárez. “There is a lot that happens on and off track in this sport in regards to technology, and I think Juniper Networks will really help JGR and my team achieve our goals of winning an XFINITY Championship this year. I can’t wait to hit to the track in Phoenix this weekend and finish in the top 10 for everyone at Juniper.”
In addition to this weekend at Phoenix International Raceway, Juniper Networks will adorn the No. 19 Camry this season at Texas Motor Speedway (April, 8); Bristol Motor Speedway (April 16); Richmond International Raceway (April 23); Daytona International Speedway (July 1); New Hampshire Motor Speedway (July 16); Indianapolis Motor Speedway (July 23); and Charlotte Motor Speedway (October 7).
The NASCAR XFINITY Series race at Phoenix International Raceway can be seen live on Saturday, March 12th at 2:30 PM ET on Fox.
About Joe Gibbs Racing:
Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is one of the premier organizations in NASCAR with four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams, three NASCAR XFINITY Series teams and a driver development program. Its 2016 driver lineup consists of Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, and Carl Edwards in the Sprint Cup Series. Meanwhile Daniel Suarez and Erik Jones will run fulltime in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. Cody Coughlin is currently in JGR’s driver development program. Based in Huntersville, N.C., and owned by Joe Gibbs — a three-time Super Bowl winner as head coach of the Washington Redskins and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame — JGR has competed in NASCAR since 1992, winning four Cup Series championships, and four XFINITY Series owner’s championships along with more than 200 NASCAR races, including four Brickyard 400s and the 1993 Daytona 500.
