Josh Williams won the hearts of fans when he parked his damaged car on the frontstretch during the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, even if it resulted in him being suspended and replaced by Alex Labbé for the following week at Circuit of the Americas.
However, his newfound glory has produced some welcome and extremely appropriate backing for the rest of the 2023 season. On Wednesday, his DGM Racing team announced Parking Guidance Systems, LLC, will sponsor his #92 Chevrolet as well as the multi-driver #91 throughout the year beginning with Labbé’s in the latter car at this weekend’s Richmond Raceway event.
PGS provides assistance with technology like INDECT, which is intended to help consumers with orderly parking inside garages at public locations such as shopping malls and stadiums.
“I’m thrilled to welcome Parking Guidance Systems to the #92 and for their support of our team as a whole by sponsoring Alex Labbé for a couple of races,” said Williams. “In the future, I won’t have to worry about where to park using PGS’s technology; if only Atlanta Motor Speedway had it in place.”
Although not an everyday occurrence, there have been instances of drivers acquiring sponsorship with a veneer of irony or unusually high appropriateness. For example, DGM part-time driver Josh Bilicki was sponsored by cheese manufacturer Sargento at the 2022 Watkins Glen Xfinity race after he crashed into a Sargento signboard during that year’s Road America event.
Williams had parked his #92 at Atlanta after being involved in a crash that resulted in damage to the hood which eventually fell off. NASCAR issued the black flag to stop scoring him as the debris that fell off caused the caution flag period to be extended. In response, Williams stopped along the start/finish line before walking away.
“We are thrilled to be partner with Josh and DGM Racing and hope that our parking guidance system will improve Josh’s parking experiences in the future,” said Derek Frantz, Vice President of Business Development for PGS. “We believe our company and mission to improve parking across the country is a perfect fit with Josh and his current situation.”
Despite the suspension, Williams did not lose championship position and enters Richmond twenty-second in points. His best finish of the year is fifteenth in the opener at Daytona.