Shady Racing Weekend in Detroit

Shady Racing Weekend in Detroit

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Eminem’s team supported Rosenqvist in Sunday’s (May 31) Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix for the love of the game, not for chasing headlines.

This year, Felix Rosenqvist’s No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda carried a special livery promoting Shade 45. The design featured the radio station logo and some very distinctive Eminem imagery from his most recent TDOSS era.

Hard work and perseverance

Eminem threw his weight behind Rosenqvist, not because he expected him to win. On the contrary, since Rosenqvist just won the Indianapolis 500 the previous week, the circumstances made a strong result difficult. He did not have time to rest and prepare for the race, as he was whisked away on a two-day media tour following his victory.

Asked about his preparation, Rosenqvist admitted he had almost no time between events. “Nothing. Zero time”, the driver expalined to journalists. “I came over here on Thursday evening, and we did the track walk and just went through everything engineering-wise. Like I didn’t do a simulator and the normal pre-week and stuff, but I mean at the end of the day, we’re all pros here and that we’ve done it before, so it’s kind of a muscle memory thing”.

Rosenqvist did not do the simulation; he arrived in Detroit on the eve of the race and qualified 16th. The Swedish driver finished all 100 laps in sixth place, avoiding several incidents happening left and right. And this is the second-best result for an Indianapolis 500 winner, just after Will Power’s second-place finish in 2018. So, in a way, he won by finishing much higher than expected despite everything that was stacked against him.

Shade45 on track

Once again, the Shady team sided with an underdog, with the one who came not for accolades but for the long game.

While there are no pictures of Eminem, Paul Rosenberg and DJ Whoo Kid came to the circuit. The team co-owner Mike Shank and Whoo Kid wore special t-shirts, matching the livery Shade45 design. In the paddock, Whoo Kid presented Rosenqvist with an iced-out chain and tried to get into the cockpit. Both he and Rosenqvist had fun.

Overall, this new type of sports partnership might be something Shady Records and Eminem are exploring. Whether it was about racing or Detroit, it is a new and colourful page in Shady history.

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