<\/p>\n
A rendering of the race car sponsored by San Antonio-based Defense Unicorns Inc. It will be taking part in the June 21 race at Naval Base Coronado in California.<\/p>\n
Spire Motorsports<\/p>\n
The unicorn mascot of a San Antonio software firm<\/a> will be hitting the track to disarm the competition.<\/p>\n Defense Unicorns Inc.<\/a> is sponsoring the No. 71 car<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 driven by Michael McDowell <\/a>\u2014 in the June 21 NASCAR Cup Series race<\/a> at Naval Base Coronado in\u00a0California.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Its cartoon mascot, Doug the unicorn, will be staring out from the hood and fenders of McDowell\u2019s Chevrolet\u00a0Camaro ZL1 as it traverses the 3.4-mile road course in a\u00a0first for both Defense Unicorns and NASCAR.<\/p>\n Backing the Spire Motorsports car<\/a> is the San Antonio company\u2019s first foray in the world of\u00a0NASCAR sponsorship. The June 21 race also is the first time that the league\u2019s top series has appeared at the venue on the Navy base near San Diego.\u00a0<\/p>\n READ MORE: San Antonio defense tech firm hits unicorn status with software update system<\/a><\/p>\n San Antonio Express News Logo<\/p>\n Make us a Preferred Source on Google to see more of us when you search.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Add Preferred Source<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n \u201cNASCAR is America\u2019s sport born from grit, built on speed, and beloved by the communities that produce our warfighters,\u201d Defense Unicorns CEO Rob Slaughter<\/a>. \u201cWe build alongside our warfighters, and events like this remind us exactly who we\u2019re building for.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n He and two of his Air Force buddies, Jeff McCoy and Andrew Greene, started the company in 2021<\/a> to help the military fix its software problems on systems disconnected from the internet, known as \u201cair gap\u201d systems.\u00a0<\/p>\n They found early success with their main program, Unicorn Delivery Service, which already is used on 50 Pentagon systems. Its largest customer is the Navy\u2019s Columbia-class nuclear submarine program.<\/p>\n The company has landed government contracts that could be worth more than a billion dollars, including potential work under the Golden Dome initiative<\/a>. \u00a0<\/p>\n Most of its 200-person staff work remotely. Earlier this year, the firm moved its headquarters from Colorado Springs to San Antonio.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n CYBER CITY: San Antonio base a contender for Space Force cyber warfare unit\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n It also reached its own unicorn status with a billion-dollar valuation after closing a $136 million funding round.<\/p>\n In the week before the race, Defense Unicorns will be hosting its Warhacker hackathon<\/a> in San Diego to bring people together to work on solving some of the military\u2019s software problems.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cDefense Unicorns was built by veterans for the mission, and sponsoring Michael McDowell \u2026 is our way of showing up for the people who make that mission possible and saying thank you,\u201d Slaughter said.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The sponsorship is a one-time deal for the Coronado race.<\/p>\n Another area company, Rush Truck Centers, a subsidiary of New Braunfels-based Rush Enterprises, also has a NASCAR sponsorship<\/a>. It’s supporting the No. 4 car of Noah Gragson and Front Row Motorsports for nine races this season, including the Coronado event.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n