Bubba Wallace appeared on CNN Tuesday night to discuss the past few days’ events with anchor Don Lemon. A rope fashioned into a noose was found in the fourth garage stall — Wallace’s garage stall — at Talladega on Sunday afternoon, leading to an FBI investigation that was concluded on Tuesday (June 23).
The investigation concluded that the way in which the rope was tied was not a hate crime, indicating that it had been there since last October, when the Cup Series last raced at the superspeedway.
Following the discovery, all drivers and crew members joined together in rolling Wallace’s No. 43 Chevrolet to the front of the grid on Monday afternoon, standing with Wallace in solidarity prior to the race.
Wallace elaborated on the hours since the FBI’s findings were announced. He has received both support and criticism from around the internet.
“I’m pissed,” Wallace said in the interview. “I’m mad because people are trying to test my character. They are trying to test my integrity. They’re not going to steal that away from me, but they’re trying to test that.”
.@BubbaWallace on @CNN:
"I'm pissed. I'm mad because people are trying to test my character. They are trying to test my integrity. They're not going to steal that away from me, but they're trying to test that." #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/3lAqpGvGnA
— Davey Segal (@DaveyCenter) June 24, 2020
“It was a noose,” he added. “It was a noose that whether tied in 2019 or whatever, it was a noose. It wasn’t directed at me, but someone tied a noose. That’s what I’m saying.”
Wallace also said that he’s never seen a garage pull tied in that fashion.
“I have been racing all my life and I have not seen a knot pull like that … it is a straight up noose,” he said, adding that he received evidence from his pit crew members.
Wallace added that NASCAR president Steve Phelps requested an in-person meeting with him on Sunday evening, and that the thought of a hate crime against Wallace had Phelps in tears.
On @CNN, @BubbaWallace says he got called from #NASCAR's Steve Phelps around 5:30-6:00 Sunday evening. Asked to meet in person.
Said it felt like the hardest thing Phelps had ever had to tell someone. "Tears going down his face that a hate crime" had been brought to him.
— Tom Bowles From Frontstretch.com (@NASCARBowles) June 24, 2020
Lemon commented on the situation, appearing optimistic that people would pardon the misunderstanding.
“Did they get it wrong? Somewhat,” he said. “But I think people will forgive NASCAR for their mistake because of the times we are in.”
Adam Cheek joined Frontstretch as a contributing writer in January 2019. A 2020 graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, he covered sports there and later spent a year and a half as a sports host on 910 the Fan in Richmond, VA. He's freelanced for Richmond Magazine and the Richmond Times-Dispatch and also hosts the Adam Cheek's Sports Week podcast. Adam has followed racing since the age of three, inheriting the passion from his grandfather, who raced in amateur events up and down the East Coast in the 1950s.
Wow, he is all over the place doubling down on a lie!!!!!!!!!!!!! He seems to have issues, big ones. HE and NASCAR have added more flames to this current insanity! They have added racial tensions in this climate to an ignorant (by design, on purpose) class of people believing a viewpoint that does not exist…systemic racism in all of NASCAR!!! EVERYBODY who watches, supports races, likes fast cars is a racist! That tired old narrative……it still sells, unreal.
Did he really believe that knot to be a noose? Come on. Shame on him. Yes, they said he didn’t see it, maybe just maybe he should have investigated a little bit privately, consulted someone privately before he ran his okole all over the place to stake his claim in the world of perpetual victimhood.
NASCAR and “Bubba” did a despicable thing, imo. On a show today “Bubba” basically said the “non believers” of this nonsense are SIMPLE MINDED!!!! If you do not worship at the alter of “Bubba”, you are the problem it seems! No, “BUBBA” the “SIMPLE MINDED” are the ones who desperately side with you even though it is a lie, to keep that nasty NASCAR and fans narrative going. NASCAR and fans are RACIST! I wonder if Al Sharpton is proud? People should feel duped, I doubt many are smart enough to figure it out! Feelings..nothing more than feelings. I feel good today I put a thumbs down on FB for racism! I made a #hashtag, etc. UGH.
His arrogance (imo) is staggering. Not an ounce of humility or shame from him or NASCAR. IMO.
KB, why are you so triggered? You have gone full blown idiotic. Does the subject of racism trigger you?
Well this is sad, but all too predictable from this crowd. When exposed, just keep pretending and as KB said, double down on the lie. Bubba’s just getting himself set up as a social justice warrior so he’ll have a career if the whole racing thing doesn’t pan out. As far as this article is concerned, Mr. Cheek – are the photos that clearly show the “noose” in question to simply be a hand-loop for closing a garage door accurate or not? I’ve never been to Dega, but this should be easy for a reporter to confirm. Of course, then you might have to re-write your first paragraph to be accurate, and we wouldn’t want that now, would we?
He now has a job for his lifetime. Owners will be afraid of the mob coming for them if they dare to fire him. The more media appearances he makes the more mob support he gets.
KB hit the nail on the head. I might be simple minded, but isn’t ironic that Richard Petty, the man who pioneered Nascar, and was one of the people who made it a major sport, will now be part of the demise. He has bought into the notion that everyone is racist. Darrell Wallace Jr, has been in Nascar several years, and only now does he feel unwanted. The woke fans Darrell hopes to attract, are too busy trying to demolish the heritage of this country to follow Nascar.
Get over yourself Bubba, you have no integrate or character. So how can anyone test something You don’t have.
You are a lying second rate driver who was looking for a way to be another poster child for Black Lives Matter. Well, you got your wish, your face will now appear on the Black Lives That Doesn’t Matter posters all over the country, right along side the lying despicable Jussie Smollette. Two peas in a pod!
First, Don Lemon is a bigot. Watch his “program.” Whoever advised Darrell Wallace (I look at the nick name “Bubba” as being a slight) to go on that program needs to be banished to watch Darrell Waltrip talk for 10 years. Lemon is not interested in Wallace or the well being of our sport.
I do believe this thing is going to fizzle and pop like a wet firecracker.
A sad time when stupidity has a seat at the table. Lost all respect for the clowns running the show. Idiots masquerading as players. Someone wanted attention and sponsors.