In Trying To Generate Playoff Drama, NASCAR ‘Rigged’ Its Championship
NASCAR has dramatically altered its product in the hopes of retaining fan interest, but it has to live with the consequences of the changes it has wrought.NASCAR has dramatically altered its product in the hopes of retaining fan interest, but it has to live with the consequences of the changes it has wrought.Michael Jordan sues NASCAR but is dealt major legal blow just 2 days before his driver competes in Cup Series championship
Michael Jordan's racing team was dealt a painful blow by a United States district judge who denied his team's request for an injunction just before the culmination of the 2024 NASCAR season.
Jordan, who co-owns 23XI Racing with three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, was joined by Front Row Motorsports in a suit against NASCAR and its chairman. The lawsuit claimed NASCAR gave all Cup Series teams a last-minute offer in September; but both teams refused to sign the offer on antitrust grounds.
Judge Whitney summarized much of the claims by the racing teams as being speculative and not definitive.
As reported by the New York Post, the racing team owners claimed NASCAR's charter system limits competition by binding teams to the series, its tracks, and suppliers in an unfair manner.
The lawsuit said Chairman Jim France and NASCAR are "monopolistic bullies."
The teams wanted the court to grant an injunction that would release them from a clause in the NASCAR charter that prevents them from suing its sanctioning body. However, U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney ruled mid-day Friday that the two racing teams did not meet the burden required to be granted the injunction.
The injunction would have allowed the teams to compete as usual (as chartered teams) while still suing NASCAR. Instead, they may now have to compete as "open" teams, which does not guarantee them a spot in NASCAR races and limits their revenue. This could cause drivers and sponsors to leave the teams because they are not privy to those guarantees.
As reported by NBC Sports, the judge decided that the plaintiffs did prove they would suffer "irreparable harm if the injunction is not granted."
Judge Whitney summarized much of the claims by the racing teams as being speculative and not definitive.
"Although Plaintiffs have alleged that they will face a risk of irreparable harm, they have not sufficiently alleged present, immediate, urgent irreparable harm, but rather only speculative, possible harm," the judge wrote.
The judge also noted that the teams "alleged a possibility" that they will lose sponsorship agreements, citing that this wording is "too speculative."
The judge further wrote that the teams only "allege that their drivers may leave if Plaintiffs compete as open teams."
"Presently, this harm is too speculative to merit a preliminary injunction."
The judge went on, "Plaintiffs have not alleged that their business cannot survive without a preliminary injunction. Instead, they allege that their businesses may not survive without a preliminary injunction."
The ruling went on similarly about "potential" losses and future business losses being "merely speculative."
"As such, this speculative harm does not warrant the extraordinary relief of a preliminary injunction," he concluded.
The ruling comes just two days before the NASCAR Cup Series Championship in Phoenix on Sunday.
Four drivers are headed into the final race in a tie for first place in the Cup Series standings; one of whom is the No. 45 car driven by Tyler Reddick for Jordan's 23XI team.
23XI's other driver, No. 23 Bubba Wallace, is in 18th place. Both drive Toyotas.
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Actor Frankie Muniz leaves 'miserable' Hollywood for good, will race in NASCAR full-time
Actor Frankie Muniz announced he's putting his acting career on hold indefinitely as he prepares to race full-time starting in 2025.
After 20 years of racing, the former "Malcolm in the Middle" star is making a huge leap forward as he's set to become a full-time driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for Reaume Brothers Racing.
'I can't be part-time, you can't act on the side.'
In an interview with Fox News, Muniz called his new gig "a dream come true."
"It's something that I've always wanted to do, and the fact that I actually get to announce that I'm doing it full-time next year, I'm thrilled," he said.
Muniz continued, "Making the leap up to the Truck Series is a whole other level."
When asked if he was ready to give up acting to be a full-time driver, Muniz said he has been working toward being a professional driver for decades.
"I wouldn't say it was a hard decision. This is something I've been working for for literally 20 years," he told Fox News' Brian Kilmeade.
Muniz gave a candid interview in April during which he expressed similar sentiments about leaving Hollywood, explaining his disconnect with the acting world.
"I never felt like I fully fit in the Hollywood world, even though I was in the world," he recalled. "I was nominated for Emmys and Golden Globes, and I was going to all this stuff, and I was there, and I was like, 'How am I here?'"
Muniz added, "I hated L.A., so I kind of stayed in my own little world, my own little bubble. And moving to Arizona, I did it on a whim, and I realized immediately that I started looking up. I started enjoying looking at trees and birds in the sky. Going to the grocery store was a fun thing. You don’t get that in L.A. It’s a miserable experience."
Muniz added that he wanted to keep his children out of Hollywood. Despite saying he had a positive experience, he noted that he knew a number of people who had "insanely negative" experiences.
For racing, Muniz said he has been chasing the "incredible feeling" of coming in first, and that comes with training and competing just as hard as the other drivers — not acting.
"I can't be part-time, you can't act on the side," he reiterated.
Muniz already has made two starts with Reaume Brothers Racing in 2024, first at the Rackley Roofing 200 in Nashville on June 28 and then the Kubota Tractor 200 in Kansas City, Kansas, on Sept. 27. He finished 31st out of 36 drivers in Nashville and 29th out of 34 in Kansas City, Kansas.
According to NASCAR, the 38-year-old hopes to continue "building chemistry with the team and developing his notebook for the upcoming year."
Muniz will drive the No. 33 Ford next season.
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'I love America. Let's make it great again': Danica Patrick says she's tired of hiding her Trump support and patriotism
Former NASCAR star Danica Patrick told a crowd of Republican supporters that she is tired of being judged for her patriotism, and she is only going to become more vocal about it.
Speaking at a Donald Trump-JD Vance event, the former driver referenced a December 2023 appearance she made at Turning Point USA's AmericaFest. During the event, she posted photos of herself and videos of conservative commentators like Brandon Tatum and Tucker Carlson.
Some were disappointed in her appearance and let her know in the comments. One reply from a viewer said they "lost all respect" for Patrick and said her attendance at the event was "super disappointing." Another commenter claimed to be "horrified" and "speechless" over the photos.
'I won't be judged for it. In fact, instead of quieting down, I'm going to get louder.'
In a video posted to X, Patrick revealed that she decided to attend the event after her father suggested it.
“The lineup of speakers was just so stellar, and I thought, 'This looks fun. I'm local.' So I said to my dad, 'Hey, Dad, you want to go,' because he's been into politics since forever. And he said, 'You know what. You should bring your sister,'" Patrick said. The photos that triggered many included some with her sister.
"So my sister flew out. We had a great time. I posted a bunch of pictures. And I'm not going to lie; red is my favorite color. I don't wear it because I'm Republican, I wear it because it is my favorite color, it just works well," she continued at the campaign event.
"So the photos definitely had a color theme. And I posted the photos, and I said, 'I love America; let's make America great again.'"
"People didn’t like that," Patrick continued. "People looked at me like I was some radical, right-wing, MAGA. Right? Like MAGA's got this awful connotation with so many people. And you know what? All it did was light a fire," she explained.
The former athlete concluded by saying that she would not be silenced into hiding her patriotism:
"I will not be judged for living in America, being an American, being a proud American, saying I love America, and wanting to make America great again. I won't be judged for it. In fact, instead of quieting down, I'm going to get louder."
Attached to the video of Patrick's empowering words was the caption, "I love america. Let's make it great again," a nod to her original post in December.
Like her previous comments, this similar statement made some readers tremble with resentment.
"Can you tell us why you support a felon?" one reader wrote. Another said, "Oh you will be judged."
Some other comments claimed that the United States is already a great country, and it needs to keep Trump out of office.
Patrick did not reveal if she planned on doing further events or how she plans to escalate her vocal support.
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'Hey, what the f***?!' Former NASCAR driver gets kicked in the face by a crew member during post-race brawl
Former NASCAR driver Matt Tifft was fined for his involvement in a post-race scuffle in which he was kicked in the face by a crew member from another team.
The incident, which Tifft called "over the line," happened after the Glass City 200 at the Toledo Speedway in Ohio.
Tifft said that after the race, he attempted to confront the driver of the No. 23 car, driven by Billy VanMeter, who Tifft alleged wrecked several cars in the race, including himself.
Only nine cars actually finished, including VanMeter, while Tifft was among seven cars that did not finish due to accidents.
Tifft posted a video of the incident online that showed him approaching VanMeter's crew after the event.
"Hey, what the f***?!" Tifft said as he walked toward VanMeter.
The driver was quickly subdued by a crew member, who put him in a headlock and brought him to the ground.
"Get out of here! You came to the wrong place!" the crew member is heard saying.
Tifft said he initially had no problem with the altercation being broken up by the crew member and subsequently a racing official.
"I had no problem with that. I instigated the confrontation, he was trying to break it up and protect their driver, I'm all good with that. ... [The official] did a great job and was doing nothing but his duty to break up the fight."
However, Tifft said that after he had clearly given up on the situation and was on the ground, another crew member named Bryan Glaze kicked him in the face.
"Under no circumstance do you just line up a kick, like you're in the NFL, to someone's face," Tifft said in an interview with Blaze News. "That's just over the line. And to add to it, he not only connected with my face but ended up kicking the official too."
Tifft was making his first comeback since leaving NASCAR in 2019 due to a brain tumor and an epilepsy diagnosis. For the Toledo race under the American Speed Association, he explained that he had heard about VanMeter beforehand.
"I was warned he was notorious for wrecking drivers, and unfortunately I fell victim that day," the driver said.
In a caption for the video, Tifft wrote, "Hopefully this is the last time getting 'VanMetered.'"
'I won't press charges to anybody else on the team.'
The ASA Stars National Tour quickly took action against all parties involved, fining Tifft $250 and deducting 25 points from his tour score. He was also placed on probation for the remainder of the calendar year.
Crew member Glaze was suspended indefinitely from all events and fined $2,000. The car owner and team were placed on probation.
Driver VanMeter also lost 25 points and was placed on probation for the remainder of the calendar year.
After seeing the video, Tifft said he is "seriously considering" pressing charges against Glaze due to how "egregious" his actions were.
"I won't press charges to anybody else on the team, again no problem with a little scuffle, but I am seriously considering it with Bryan because of the fact that aspiring young drivers come through this series to develop, and they don't need to be around people like this."
Tifft concluded by stating he will not be retaliating against VanMeter in any way and hopes that he will race clean in the future.
The driver said that he wanted to channel all the drama into attention toward a good cause when he appears at the Akron Children's Hospital Dance for Kids event on October 18.
"Watch me dance (terribly) on stage with some kids for a good cause."
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Caitlin Clark reveals she's a huge NASCAR fan after she's featured in paint scheme for Brickyard 400
Women's basketball superstar Caitlin Clark said that she was a big NASCAR fan as a child ahead of appearing on the hood of a race car for the Brickyard 400.
Clark was featured on Stewart-Haas Racing's No. 4 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, driven by Josh Berry. The hood showed Clark in her college jersey from Iowa, along with the Donruss trading cards logo and the text "Raining 3s." The car was sponsored by Panini Trading Cards.
"I was like, 'Oh my gosh! Is this real?!'" Clark said, according to WNDY. "I want to drive the car. So sometime maybe I have to take a spin, but it's super cool. … Hopefully it brings good vibes and we get the W."
'The amount of reach and popularity she's gained over the last couple years has been really amazing to watch.'
The WNBA player then said she was a fan of the sport growing up, indicating that her mother was involved in the racing league in some way.
"Honestly, I grew up watching NASCAR. My mom was kind of involved in it. So I was a really big fan growing up. It's super cool."
It is unclear how Clark's mother was involved with NASCAR, if it all; however, Sporting News reported that she was the vice president of product marketing at American Enterprise Group Inc.
Stewart-Haas driver Berry called it a "great opportunity" to have Clark's image on the hood of the car.
"The amount of reach and popularity she's gained over the last couple years has been really amazing to watch and just how it's kind of transcended women's basketball. Obviously, being a girl dad, you don’t necessarily put the two together right now, but as she grows older I'm sure it will be a pretty cool thing to look back on as she continues her career." he added.
Unfortunately, Berry's No. 4 car finished 35th, completing just 63 laps before getting into a crash that sent him to the infield medical center. He was reportedly evaluated and released.
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Clark and and the racing team will partner again in August 2024 when the hood will be donated to an auction to raise money for the Matt Alexander Memorial Baseball Scholarship Fund. The fund honors a baseball player who was shot during a mass shooting in 2021 at a FedEx facility.
The fund annually awards a high school senior baseball player $1,600 to further his education.
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NASCAR introduces electric vehicle as part of commitment to 'decarbonization' and 'sustainable' operations by 2035
NASCAR revealed an electric vehicle prototype at a Chicago event and spoke about its plans to "decarbonize" operations.
The racing organization showed off its new EV at the Chicago Street Race and published materials riddled with activist jargon regarding sustainability goals that have been heard ad nauseum from large corporations.
Touting a mission to strengthen its communities by advancing sustainability, NASCAR partnered with Swedish-Swiss electrical equipment manufacturer ABB.
'We actually have the opportunity to evaluate not just the battery electric part, but then also the crossover vehicle part.'
The beloved American stock car league's commitments to electrification echo those of the most basic plans put forth by limitless jurisdictions and manufacturers, stating that it would decarbonize its facilities and reach a net-zero carbon footprint in its core operations by 2035.
Simply put, while NASCAR said it will still use combustion engines in its cars, it would like to be able to tell people that its nonracing operations are sustainable.
"The combustion engine is our core product, and that will remain so for the coming future," Riley Nelson, NASCAR's head of sustainability, told CNN.
NASCAR hopes to have 100% renewable electricity at its racetracks and facilities by 2028 and also to have on-site electric vehicle charging stations. The partnership with ABB will supply the infrastructure needed at operational sites.
The EV itself, the ABB NASCAR EV Prototype, debuted in 2022 and was an attempt to make race cars look more similar to cars on the street, NASCAR said in a press release.
The car has three electric motors (one front, two rear) and regenerative braking. The braking is when an electric vehicle slows its speed to revert surplus energy back to the battery to allow for a longer driving time. This can be an irritating feature of a commercial electric vehicle, as certain driving modes will automatically put the brakes on the EV when it is at very low speeds, such as in a car wash.
"The pilot programs that we've implemented within operations of our core business, and then also the events, has been going really well," NASCAR's Nelson continued. She added the company is "still in the early stages of this journey."
NASCAR’s senior vice president of racing development, John Probst, told CNN that some fans will reject the very idea of electric racing and said that the gas cars are in no immediate danger of extinction. But like Nelson, Probst did not say they will never be eliminated.
The company reportedly has plans to change its fuel to become more sustainable in the future as well, despite currently using 85% gasoline and 15% ethanol.
"We actually have the opportunity to evaluate not just the battery electric part, but then also the crossover vehicle part," Probst said. "So it may be that one or both of these will become something in the future for us."
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Manhunt underway as Florida man strikes again, vandalizes pride mural
The famous "Florida man" headline strikes again.
This time, it’s for a progressive Pride street mural that was supposedly vandalized with tire marks by two drivers. Now, St. Petersburg police are on the hunt for them.
The first driver made his mark on May 17 at 9:36 am, when he decided to channel his inner NASCAR and zoom through the mural at 2500 Central Ave in his truck. Not to be outdone, a blue two-door car showed up at 2:41 am on May 22, where he spun doughnuts.
The incidents were caught on camera and show the second car spinning in circles on the rainbow walkway.
The second joyride will cost the city about $1,100 to fix, which makes it an official criminal mischief felony.
One LGBTQ bartender who works at Ride’em Cowboy in St. Petersburg told reporters he was “shocked and devastated,” especially considering the action took place “so close to Pride.”
“I think we all need to be careful now. There’s people obviously out there to get us that are a part of the LGBTQ including myself,” he continued, adding, “I was very upset somebody would do this.”
Pat Gray can’t stop laughing.
“They act like these are sacred areas, like they’re Indian burial grounds or something,” Gray says.
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