NASCAR has reportedly rejected a sponsorship deal for driver Brandon Brown that would have referenced the “let’s go Brandon” epithet that has become a popular among the right as a way of bad-mouthing President Biden.
Sources close to the matter told The Washington Post that NASCAR executives decided to reject a sponsorship deal for Brown that would have been between him and LGBcoin, a cryptocurrency based off of “let’s go Brandon.” The deal would have resulted in “LGB” being painted on the side of Brown’s Xfinity series car.
However, soon after the deal was announced, it was reported that Brown had jumped the gun in disclosing the new sponsorship, with the approval coming from someone who lacked the proper authority. NASCAR said last week that it would be reviewing the sponsorship.
A NASCAR official told the Post that the company had decided in November that it would not be allowing any references or images based on the chant.
The phrase became a euphemism for criticism of Biden in October when an NBC Sports reporter mistakenly said people chanting “F— Joe Biden” were instead saying “let’s go Brandon” after Brown achieved his first career victory.
Brown, a Republican, has previously sought to distance himself from the chant, telling The New York Times last month that he has “zero desire to be involved in politics.”
The Hill has reached out to NASCAR for comment.