FBI Investigating Noose Left in Talladega Garage of Bubba Wallace: NASCAR President

NASCAR President Steve Phelps said on Monday that the FBI will be investigating the discovery of a noose found in the Talladega Superspeedway garage stall of Bubba Wallace.

Wallace is NASCAR's only Black full-time driver who successfully pushed the stock car series to ban the Confederate flag at its venues less than two weeks ago.

"Birmingham office of the FBI, and they are currently on site and they've started their investigation," Phelps said during a teleconference call.

"You know, obviously, this is a very, very serious act and we take it as such. We will do everything in our power to make sure that whoever has committed this act comes to justice and comes to light," he said.

U.S. Attorney Jay Town also confirmed that the FBI and the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division were involved in the investigation.

Phelps said the noose was found Sunday afternoon by a crew member he did not identify and security as notified.

He said security had been stepped up and the FBI was "currently on site" at the track, just two hours before Monday's postponed race.

The stock car series, founded in the South more than 70 years ago, has tried to distance itself from the flag for years at the risk of alienating a core group of its fan base.

At Wallace's urging, it went ahead with the ban as the nation grapples with social unrest largely tied to George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who died in the custody of Minneapolis police.

NASCAR has not outlined how it will enforce the restriction and this week's race at Talladega, in the heart of the South, presented the series with its biggest test in the early going.

Disgruntled fans with Confederate flags drove past the main entrance to the Alabama race track prior to Sunday's race, while a plane flew above the track pulling a banner of the flag that read "Defund NASCAR."

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NASCAR President Steve Phelps said on Monday that the FBI will be investigating the discovery of a noose found in the Talladega Superspeedway garage stall of Bubba Wallace.

Wallace is NASCAR’s only Black full-time driver who successfully pushed the stock car series to ban the Confederate flag at its venues less than two weeks ago.

“Birmingham office of the FBI, and they are currently on site and they’ve started their investigation,” Phelps said during a teleconference call.

“You know, obviously, this is a very, very serious act and we take it as such. We will do everything in our power to make sure that whoever has committed this act comes to justice and comes to light,” he said.

U.S. Attorney Jay Town also confirmed that the FBI and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division were involved in the investigation.

Phelps said the noose was found Sunday afternoon by a crew member he did not identify and security as notified.

He said security had been stepped up and the FBI was “currently on site” at the track, just two hours before Monday’s postponed race.

The stock car series, founded in the South more than 70 years ago, has tried to distance itself from the flag for years at the risk of alienating a core group of its fan base.

At Wallace’s urging, it went ahead with the ban as the nation grapples with social unrest largely tied to George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who died in the custody of Minneapolis police.

NASCAR has not outlined how it will enforce the restriction and this week’s race at Talladega, in the heart of the South, presented the series with its biggest test in the early going.

Disgruntled fans with Confederate flags drove past the main entrance to the Alabama race track prior to Sunday’s race, while a plane flew above the track pulling a banner of the flag that read “Defund NASCAR.”

Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2TwO8Gm

QuickTake by Bloomberg is a global news network delivering up-to-the-minute analysis on the biggest news, trends and ideas for a new generation of leaders.