The Scandals Of NASCAR That You Won’t Believe

Behind The Name

NASCAR was founded in Florida in 1948 and back then, any of the cars that raced had to be exactly the same as those ordinary people could buy – this is where the phrase “stock car racing” came from. As with most things, there is always something happening that we just don’t know about and the scandals within the NASCAR industry will certainly stun you.

Chairmain Trouble

NASCAR’s Chairman and CEO Brian France sent shock waves through the industry in August 2018 when he was pulled over by police for dangerous driving as he weaved his way through the Hamptons. Upon pulling him over, and asking him to take a sobriety test, the police found that he was twice the legal limit. Bad move France, bad move!

Ford Pulled Out

During one competition in 1966, the Ford Motor Company took it upon themselves to boycott the NASCAR season due to their feelings towards the league’s regulations. Annoyed with certain points made in regard to the functions of the car’s engines, they turned their back on the competition.

France Vs Ford

Driving for the Ford team at the time was Junior Johnson, who after the dispute, left the team and entered his own car, his “Yellow Banana”. The car was designed with a chopped roofline and had contoured fenders. The France family gave authorization on the move, with only further aggravated Ford. Rumors swirled that Johnson had an under the table deal with the France’s all along.

Dunaway Driver

Today’s Sprint Cup Series was once known as the Strictly Stock Series where it took place at Charlotte Speedway. In 1947, Glen Dunaway drove for Ford and won the race, but his celebrations were stopped before they even begun. Following an inspection of his vehicle, it was announced there was some highly illegal activity under the hood!

Illegal Activity

With the chaos surrounding Dunaway’s disqualification, heads turned towards his team owner Hubert Westmoreland. It came to light that the former moonshiner installed “bootlegger rear springs” to keep the trunk up, even against the heaviest cargo. Shockingly, Westmoreland then went on to NASCAR after his own disqualification, to which he sued them. It’s safe to say, he lost.

Toyota Joined The Race

It was in 2007 that Toyota entered the NASCAR world for the first time. Michael Waltrip headed the Toyota team and they chose one of their new vehicles to qualify for the competition. With excitement surround them joining the race, it was a shock when news was released that they had used “performance enhancing drugs”, that was found in the cars fuel cell.

Offical Warning

NASCAR officials have always been known as some of the most cut-throat out there, and in 1997 they lived up to their name. On location at Talladega, driver Jeff Burton arrived with a modified roof, leaving people in disbelief how he could be so brave to do so, but NASCAR didn’t stand for it and tore the roof from the car and completely destroyed it. Ouch!

Major Fine

The competition has had both big and small budget racers face the track and no matter what category you fall in to, if you are caught doing something wrong, NASCAR will let you know. In 2009, Carl Long was caught cheating upon qualifying for the All-Star race, as a punishment, NASCAR slapped him with 200 points and a $200,000 fine!

Breaking The Rules

All the cars that compete in the competition have to be checked and go through a qualifying stage but in 1967 the rules were bent for Smokey Yunick. Arriving at the track in an unsponsored Chevrolet Chevelle, fans and officials were shocked to see the car back in the game after many years and so they allowed him to race without any fines or suspensions.

Few More Inches

Despite the strong rules and regulation and threats of fines, some drivers were so desperate to win that they were happy to take their chances. Pushing his luck in 1990, Mark Martin was fined 46 points, as well as a whopping $40,000 fine, the highest fine ever made by that time. It doesn’t look as though making the car’s carburetor taller was worth it at all.

Friends First

Part of the Michael Waltrip Racing group, Clint Bowyer went against the rules to aid his teammate in 2013. When qualifying for the Sprint Cup, Martin Truex Jr. needed a helping hand and Bowyer spun his car out on purpose to help his friend. At first, NASCAR believed it was a genuine incident but upon further review, the team was fined $300,000 and they had their sponsorship with NAPA Auto Parts revoked.

Controversial Winner

During the 80s, Richard Petty was a NASCAR legend and one of the most famous faces in the business. A winner of Miller High Life 500 in 1983, the win at Charlotte Motor Speedway became one of the sports most talked about victories, but for all the wrong reasons. After discovering the engine was 23 cubic inches too big, NASCAR took 104 points from Petty but allowed him to keep his win. This caused chaos amongst other drivers and it took a while for the competition to recover the scandal.

Win And Loose

In 2000, it was Jeremy Mayfield who ruffled some feathers at Talladega. After being caught adding an illegal liquid to the fuel cell of his car, other competitors thought a fine of $50,000 and 151 points was too small. The situation was aggravated even more in the next race at Auto Club Speedway after he scooped the win, but it was for another reason he never raced again.

Bye Bye Mayfield

Mayfield first entered NASCAR in 1993 and raced all the way through to 2009 when he was eventually suspended indefinitely. Taking part in the legal drug testing, this time his car passed, however, he did not, as he tested positive for a Class A. Taking them to court on the basis of weak evidence, his band was lifted but then handed back to him when he tested positive for a second time.

Three’s A Crowd

In 1979 NASCAR was rife with trouble and no one knew what to do about it. During qualifiers, Darrell Waltrip, Dave Marcis and A.J. Foyt all qualified in the top three but officials at Daytona 500 became embroiled in a very messy situation. All three players were found to be using nitrous oxide, with Waltrip saying, “If you don’t cheat, you look like an idiot. If you do it and you don’t get caught, you look like a hero. If you do it and get caught, you look like a dope. Put me in the category where I belong.”

Stewart Speaks Out

A major rumored scandal that has always hung over the competition is whether NASCAR actually fixes any of the races and it was Tony Stewart, who in 2007 spoke out about it on his radio show, explaining, “It’s like playing God. They can almost dictate the race instead of the drivers doing it…I don’t know that they’ve run a fair race all year.”

Fighting For Rights

Back in 1961, NASCAR hadn’t been around for long and still had much to learn how to run the big organization in which it had become. With working conditions not, the best, two drivers, Tim Flock, and Curtis Turner formed a union against NASCAR in a fight for their working conditions to improve but it wasn’t long until Bill France stepped in and put an end to it.

Is He The Winner Or Not?

Amazingly, Wendell Scott was the first African-American to compete in NASCAR. Making a stand, it was in 1963 that, after winning a race, he ran over to a white woman and gave her a kiss, causing a shocked reaction from everyone there. NASCAR messed up and awarded the victory to another driver, Buck Baker. The controversy was watched closely, and they later re-awarded the win back to Scott.

Help The Environment

With no regulations ever being enforced on NASCAR by the EPA, in 2008 the sport took a turn and began their green initiative to observe how the game impacted the environment. The organization has faced critics for being behind the times and not seeming to care about it so much.

Same Dog, Same Tricks

A common name in this article, Michael Waltrip also got himself into trouble in 2007. Obviously never learning his lesson, it was at the Gatorade Duel, that NASCAR confiscated his car after finding an unlicensed substance. When moving on to his next car, the substance was found yet again! Does this guy ever give up and want to play clean?

Gatorade Gate

The Gatorade Duel seemed to be filled with scandal and it wasn’t just Waltrip who got caught. Drivers, Robbie Reiser, Bobby Kennedy, Kenny Francis and Evernham Motorsports all got royally busted for making illegal modifications on their motors.

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