All-Female IMSA Team Hurt By End Of Caterpillar Sponsorship

After Caterpillar did not renew its sponsorship, Heinricher had to race to land a sponsor for '20GETTY IMAGES

Caterpillar's decision last fall to "no longer bankroll" Heinricher Racing, the first all-female team to complete a season in the IMSA series, illustrates how finding sponsors continues to be a "barrier for women, who are often treated as marketing gimmicks rather than serious competitors," according to Roy Furchgott of the N.Y. TIMES. Team Principal Jackie Heinricher in recent years set out to "create an all-star team of female drivers," and her team found its "main support" from Caterpillar for the '19 season. The team finished the season in the top 10. Furchgott noted when Caterpillar chose not to renew its sponsorship, Heinricher "raced the clock to find a sponsor" for the '20 season to "keep her team together." But another team owner "wooed away her drivers, leaving Heinricher to affect change as the only woman team owner and, at least this season, not from behind the wheel" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/18).