- on sunday the team of nascar driver bubba wallace, who drives the no. 43 chevrolet for richard petty motorsports, found a noose in the team garage at the talladega superspeedway.
- nascar issued a strong statement on sunday night saying it is "angry and outraged" and that it has launched an investigation.
- on tuesday afternoon, the fbi reported that the noose had been in that garage for months, probably since last fall, and that it was not a hate crime against wallace.
update 6/23/2020: nascar held a press conference at 6 p.m. on tuesday saying the noose found in the bubba wallace garage at talladega this past weekend was not a hate crime against the black driver. the fbi report includes "photographic evidence" that shows the noose was a pull rope on a garage door twisted into the shape of a noose and that it had been there since "as early as last fall." nevertheless, nascar said the organization is moving forward with a commitment to "providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for all who love racing."
less than two weeks after nascar's only black driver in the cup series, bubba wallace, drove his no. 43 chevy in black lives matter livery and spoke out against racism, a noose was reportedly left in his team garage at the talladega superspeedway. the noose was found by a team member and was not seen by wallace himself, according to espn. nascar issued a statement saying "there is no place for racism in nascar" and vowing to find the guilty party and "eliminate them from the sport."
earlier this month, as wallace made headlines for his anti-racism stand, the racing body banned the confederate flag from all nascar events. however, the wall street journal and other publications reported that confederate flags were being "paraded" outside the talladega venue on sunday by some fans.
wallace posted on twitter sunday saying that despite this "despicable act of racism and hatred," he has been "overwhelmed" by the support of most people, including other drivers and teams, in the nascar organization.
dale earnhardt, jr., had a more succinct comment on sunday night: