NASCAR 'angry and outraged' after noose found in Bubba Wallace's garage, will launch immediate investigation

[DKW 86 7,419]

NASCAR 'angry and outraged' after noose found in Bubba Wallace's garage, will launch immediate investigation

NASCAR has revealed that a noose was found in the garage of Bubba Wallace's No. 43 team during Sunday's Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama. The company released a statement on Sunday night stating they are "angry and outraged" and will be launching an investigation to identify the culprit(s).

"Late this afternoon, NASCAR was made aware that a noose was found in the garage stall of the 43 team. We are angry and outraged and cannot state strongly enough how seriously we take this heinous act. We have launched an immediate investigation and will do everything we can to identify the person(s) responsible and eliminate them from the sport. As we have stated unequivocally, there is no place for racism in NASCAR and this act only strengthens our resolve to make the sport open and welcoming to all."

No fans were allowed in the infield at Talladega on Sunday, which suggests that whoever left the noose in Wallace's garage had credentials to be present in that area. Wallace is the only Black driver who currently competes at NASCAR's top level. 

According to Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass, NASCAR will also be working with police to determine if any crimes were committed in the incident.

Wallace released a statement on Sunday night as well.

"Today's despicable act of racism and hatred leaves me incredibly saddened and serves as a painful reminder of how much further we have to go as a society and how persistent we must be in the fight against racism," wrote Wallace in a message shared to Twitter. "Over the last several weeks, I have been overwhelmed by the support from people across the NASCAR industry including other drivers and team members in the garage. Together, our sport has made a commitment to driving real change and championing a community that is accepting and welcoming of everyone. Nothing is more important and we will not be deterred by the reprehensible actions of those who seek to spread hate.

"As my mother told me today, 'they are just trying to scare you.' This will not break me, I will not give in nor will I back down. I will continue to proudly stand for what I believe in."

Another more prominent Black athlete, LeBron James, showed his support for Wallace and NASCAR.

LeBron James

 

✔@KingJames

 

 

Sickening! @BubbaWallace my brother! Know you don’t stand alone! I’m right here with you as well as every other athlete. I just want to continue to say how proud I am of you for continuing to take a stand for change here in America and sports! @NASCAR I salute you as well! https://twitter.com/yahoosports/status/1274899064090435584 …

Yahoo Sports

 

✔@YahooSports

 

NASCAR investigation underway after a noose was found hanging in Bubba Wallace's garage stall at Talladega.

https://yhoo.it/3hNX3j3 

 

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10:58 PM - Jun 21, 2020

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Wallace has been a vocal advocate for Black Lives Matter. He recently campaigned for NASCAR to ban Confederate flags from all events to promote a more welcoming and diverse environment, and NASCAR quickly decided to follow Wallace's advice. 

Sunday's scheduled race, which was postponed until Monday because of inclement weather, would have been the first race in the state of Alabama since the Confederate flag ban was implemented. On Sunday afternoon, a plane flew a Confederate flag over Talladega with the message "Defund NASCAR" attached to the banner. 

[AUDub 11,147]

Sigh. NASCAR's serious image problems continue. 

[DKW 86 7,419]

I dont think this is going to get any better before it gets way worse.

 

[aubiefifty 16,766]

the only statue they want to remove that bothers  me is emma sansom in gadsden. and it has nothing to do with the confederacy. before emma sansom and gadsden high school closed down during football season gadsden high kids would always try to put a gadsden high school jersey on her. and the sansom kids would try to stop them. i know one of her hands is missing and they used to put rewards out with no luck for anyone that brought it back. and i have seen the jerseys on emma over the years and other than the possibility of people getting hurt i thought what fun. broad street would be full of folks in cars doing their circle honking and shooting birds and all that. sadly the traffic got so bad kids were defecating and urinating in or in front of business entrances. so that put an end to that.  but my point and memories are when i saw her i saw jerseys and not a rebel.

[homersapien 11,367]

Well, this was totally predictable.

"No place for racism in Nascar" makes about as much sense as saying "there's no place for racism in Alabama".

But I give them credit for making the effort.

[Tiger Refuge 6,662]

I've been in that garage before and there is no way that it wasn't witnessed by someone or recorded on a camera. The garage area is monitored 24/7 and the teams are only allowed in there at certain times. Once it's locked up in the evening, only one official and the security guards are allowed inside. Hell, all the car haulers parked around the garage have cameras mounted on the back of them. 

[ShocksMyBrain 9,364]

20 minutes ago, Tiger Refuge said:

I've been in that garage before and there is no way that it wasn't witnessed by someone or recorded on a camera. The garage area is monitored 24/7 and the teams are only allowed in there at certain times. Once it's locked up in the evening, only one official and the security guards are allowed inside. Hell, all the car haulers parked around the garage have cameras mounted on the back of them. 

That’s also assuming there’s the same amount of security, staff, etc. there now as they did pre-COVID guidelines. People are making it sound like the backstage at NASCAR is the same as Fort Knox. 

[AUDub 11,147]

The King is going to attend the race today in solidarity with his driver. 

[AUDub 11,147]

4 minutes ago, ShocksMyBrain said:

That’s also assuming there’s the same amount of security, staff, etc. there now as they did pre-COVID guidelines. People are making it sound like the backstage at NASCAR is the same as Fort Knox. 

In truth, NASCAR takes securing those garages pretty seriously, mostly to keep the teams fast and loose with the rules (i.e. all of them) from modifying the cars. 

[Tiger Refuge 6,662]

2 minutes ago, ShocksMyBrain said:

That’s also assuming there’s the same amount of security, staff, etc. there now as they did pre-COVID guidelines. People are making it sound like the backstage at NASCAR is the same as Fort Knox. 

True. 

 

When I was there, I was actually working as a security guard(think Blart minus the enthusiasm). They(NASCAR) were very serious about keeping people out at certain times. We would have to run to the haulers for some of the teams after hours because they forgot a bag. During the day, it was unreal how many people they let in there. Fans walking around with cars shooting in and out of the garage area. I can't believe no one has been killed or seriously injured. 

[ShocksMyBrain 9,364]

1 hour ago, Tiger Refuge said:

True. 

 

When I was there, I was actually working as a security guard(think Blart minus the enthusiasm). They(NASCAR) were very serious about keeping people out at certain times. We would have to run to the haulers for some of the teams after hours because they forgot a bag. During the day, it was unreal how many people they let in there. Fans walking around with cars shooting in and out of the garage area. I can't believe no one has been killed or seriously injured. 

I’ve been lucky to have pit passes and behind the scene access from a spectator’s POV on several occasions. Been in and around the garages, watched crews work on cars up close, and all that. I don’t see how it’s being written off as an inside job, when if you’re sneaky enough, you could legitimately toss something into the garage area. But this was also 20+ years ago, so maybe they’ve beefed up security since. Perhaps, there’s a section of the BTS garage that this was found or I’m simply being naive.

[Brad_ATX 13,654]

8 hours ago, aubiefifty said:

the only statue they want to remove that bothers  me is emma sansom in gadsden. and it has nothing to do with the confederacy. before emma sansom and gadsden high school closed down during football season gadsden high kids would always try to put a gadsden high school jersey on her. and the sansom kids would try to stop them. i know one of her hands is missing and they used to put rewards out with no luck for anyone that brought it back. and i have seen the jerseys on emma over the years and other than the possibility of people getting hurt i thought what fun. broad street would be full of folks in cars doing their circle honking and shooting birds and all that. sadly the traffic got so bad kids were defecating and urinating in or in front of business entrances. so that put an end to that.  but my point and memories are when i saw her i saw jerseys and not a rebel.

I'm actually a descendant of hers.

[DKW 86 7,419]

 

 

[metafour 4,969]

Just another convenient oopsie. Nothing to see here....

 

[alexava 6,973]

Overreacting has become the norm. The damn rope has been there for months and was attached to the handle and used to pull the ******* door down. 

[AUDub 11,147]

7 minutes ago, alexava said:

Overreacting has become the norm. The damn rope has been there for months and was attached to the handle and used to pull the ******* door down. 

Feel bad for the crew member that reported it. He's going to catch hell. 

[I_M4_AU 7,801]

41 minutes ago, AUDub said:

Feel bad for the crew member that reported it. He's going to catch hell. 

I’d like to know if NASCAR or an individual leaked it to the press.  If it was NASCAR they should do a little research before letting this out as they had all the security tools to squash this from the beginning.  If it was an individual, they should be fired.

[DKW 86 7,419]

 

Trying to find the picture from 2019. but that loop has been there well over a year at least. I now have whackadoodle friends wondering out-loud how he got assigned THAT garage (#5) My understanding is that they are assigned based on qualifying. Can we officially call this a fake news story? We should call it a publicity stunt. I have zero doubt that someone, not sure who, but someone thought this was a great attention getter. 

I bet half the people on this board have a "noose" attached to their garage door. <FER>

[SocialCircle 570]

I’m just glad nobody put it in there because of Bubba Wallace. 

[gr82be 14,423]

Additionally, Wood Brothers Racing put out a statement saying one of its employees recalled Monday "seeing a tied handle in the garage pull-down rope from last fall."

Hate that it took an employee until Monday to remember seeing that last year. 

[I_M4_AU 7,801]

3 minutes ago, gr82be said:

Additionally, Wood Brothers Racing put out a statement saying one of its employees recalled Monday "seeing a tied handle in the garage pull-down rope from last fall."

Hate that it took an employee until Monday to remember seeing that last year. 

 

That employee probably didn’t know where the noose was found or how it was displayed until the FBI started asking questions and showing photos.  I would hope that was the case.

[homersapien 11,367]

22 hours ago, alexava said:

Overreacting has become the norm. The damn rope has been there for months and was attached to the handle and used to pull the ******* door down. 

Well, had it been placed there as an intentional act of racial intimidation, it wouldn't have been an over-reaction. And who would have thought it was purely a coincidence? 

[SaltyTiger 7,793]

38 minutes ago, homersapien said:

And who would have thought it was purely a coincidence? 

People with common sense that can see a cord tied to the garage door with a small loop in it maybe?

[SaltyTiger 7,793]

38 minutes ago, homersapien said:

And who would have thought it was purely a coincidence? 

People with common sense that can see a cord tied to the garage door with a small loop in it maybe?

[homersapien 11,367]

2 minutes ago, SaltyTiger said:

People with common sense that can see a cord tied to the garage door with a small loop in it maybe?

How large was that loop exactly?  And when exactly was it revealed that it was tied to a garage door pull-down?

Remember, the topic was on over-reaction to a noose found in the garage of a the only black driver in Nascar who had just advocating the removal of a confederate flag which is all that anyone knew at the time.