President Donald Trump tweeted Monday morning asking if Bubba Wallace has apologized after a noose was found in June in the Talladega Superspeedway garage stall belonging to him and the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports team.
The denigrating tweet also contains multiple lies and illogical claims, including the president calling the incident a “HOAX,” despite the FBI and NASCAR saying otherwise.
It wasn’t a staged incident nor a hoax, according to the FBI’s investigation. And even NASCAR president Steve Phelps previously said he’s personally offended by those arguing the incident was staged.
Wallace doesn’t owe anyone an apology, and he and the No. 43 team had nothing to do with the incident — another detail the FBI and NASCAR noted.
After Trump tweeted about Wallace, the only Black driver in the Cup Series, a handful of people in the NASCAR world publicly expressed their support for him, including seven-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson and rookie Tyler Reddick in a now-deleted tweet.
Richard Petty Motorsports co-owner Andrew Murstein called the president’s tweet “a late, misinformed, and factually incorrect statement.” And the team’s Twitter account shared an image of the No. 43 logo with the now-popular hashtag #IStandWithBubba (the same one Johnson tweeted).
NASCAR also put out a statement on Monday, but it left a lot to be desired.
In response to For The Win’s request for a comment on Trump’s tweet about Wallace, NASCAR said via email:
“We are proud to have Bubba Wallace in the NASCAR family and we commend his courage and leadership. NASCAR continues to stand tall with Bubba, our competitors and everyone who makes our sport welcoming and inclusive for all racing fans.”
That’s it.
Not only did it take the governing body more than seven hours to release a statement defending Wallace, but it also didn’t mention Trump, Twitter or the baseless hoax accusation, which lends credibility to related conspiracy theories. The president of the United States targeted one of NASCAR’s drivers and impugned his character, and NASCAR responded with a mediocre statement at best.
NASCAR needs to — and should want to — take a stronger stance in favor of one of its drivers. And the same goes for Wallace’s fellow competitors.
They’ve supported him over the last month, stood by his side, and made anti-racism commitments. But most have remained silent regarding Trump’s disparaging tweet, and everyone needs to do better and speak up.
