Spire Sports + Entertainment (SS+E) is an American talent management agency, motorsports consultant and sports ownership firm founded in 2010. SS+E represents drivers, sponsors and teams in NASCAR, IndyCar, and their respective development ladders, as well as music artists. SSE also owns a part of ECHL teams Rapid City Rush, Greenville Swamp Rabbits, and Trois-Rivières Lions.[1][2]
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | |
| Headquarters | , |
Key people | Jeff Dickerson (CEO, co-founder) TJ Puchyr (co-owner, co-founder) Emma Setzer (CFO) Todd Mackin (President) |
| Subsidiaries |
|
| Website | spiresportsinc |
About
editSpire was founded in 2010 by Jeff Dickerson and T.J. Puchyr and as a driver-focused motorsports industry.[3][4] The agency works closely with NASCAR drivers such as Rick Hendrick and Chip Ganassi, auto manufacturers like Toyota, brands like 5-Hour Energy. As well as broker deals with driver transactions, sponsorships, and endorsments.[3]
On December 4, 2018, it was announced that SS+E had purchased a charter in order to enter the NASCAR Cup Series and form its own race team, Spire Motorsports.[5][6] The team currently fields the No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Justin Haley and the No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Carson Hocevar.[7][8] SS+E also fields the No. 71 Camaro for Zane Smith on lease from Trackhouse Racing.
Agency
editSpire Sports + Entertainment have clients including James Hinchcliffe, Landon Cassill, Ross Chastain, Todd Gilliland, Justin Haley, Garrett Smithley, Vinnie Miller, Travis Braden, and Cole Rouse. They also have served as official consultants for various sponsors and teams including Hendrick Motorsports, Chip Ganassi Racing, GMS Racing, ThorSport Racing, Larson Marks Racing, 5-hour Energy, Eneos and DC Solar, as well as for Knoxville Raceway.[7]
Legal issues
editIt was announced on June 28, 2018, that former client Brennan Poole would sue Chip Ganassi Racing and Spire Sports + Entertainment for breach of contract, alleging that CGR and Spire conspired to take away DC Solar's personal sponsorship from Poole and move it to the No. 42 CGR Cup Series team and that Spire's involvement representing both driver and team constituted a conflict of interest.[9][10] Ganassi and Spire both released statements through attorneys denying the claims, with CGR's statement saying the sponsorship of Poole ended "because he never won a race despite the advantages of the best equipment in the garage."[11][12]
Spire Motorsports
editReferences
edit- ^ "Rush make major ownership group change". Rapid City Journal. 11 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
- ^ "Les Lions de Trois-Rivières vendus officiellement" [The Trois-Rivières Lions officially sold]. La Presse (in French). 2024-04-08. Retrieved 2024-04-09.
- ^ a b "Motorsports-heavy Spire Sports shifts gears, moves into music and esports spaces". www.sportsbusinessjournal.com. 2017-12-18. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
- ^ Haden, Jeff (2 August 2019). "Its Nothing-to-Lose Strategy Helped Spire Motorsports Win at Daytona, but the Company's Huge Bet on Nascar Means It Has Plenty to Lose". Inc.
- ^ Gluck, Jeff (December 6, 2018). "Explaining the Spire purchase of Furniture Row's charter". JeffGluck.com. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
- ^ Gluck, Jeff. "How Spire's 'Charter Guys' turned a $6M piece of paper no one wanted into a NASCAR team". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
- ^ a b Nguyen, Justin (December 5, 2018). "Spire Sports buys Furniture Row charter, to field #77". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
- ^ Seelman, Jacob (December 4, 2018). "Spire Purchases Charter From Furniture Row". Speed Sport. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
- ^ Vincent, Amanda (June 29, 2018). "Brennan Poole sues Chip Ganassi Racing NASCAR team". The Drive. Time Inc. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
- ^ "Brennan Poole files lawsuit against Chip Ganassi Racing". NBC Sports. June 28, 2018. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
- ^ Vincent, Amanda (July 3, 2018). "Chip Ganassi Racing Has Answer for Brennan Pooles Accusations". The Drive. Time Inc. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
- ^ "Brennan Poole sues Chip Ganassi Racing, Spire Sports Agency over sponsorship conspiracy". Autoweek. June 28, 2018. Retrieved December 5, 2018.