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President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Monday to share his stance on NASCAR’s support of Black driver Bubba Wallace and his take on the sport condemning the Confederate flag.



“Has @BubbaWallace apologized to all of those great NASCAR drivers & officials who came to his aid, stood by his side, & were willing to sacrifice everything for him, only to find out that the whole thing was just another HOAX?” Trump wrote Monday.

“That & Flag decision has caused lowest ratings EVER!” Trump added.

Has @BubbaWallace apologized to all of those great NASCAR drivers & officials who came to his aid, stood by his side, & were willing to sacrifice everything for him, only to find out that the whole thing was just another HOAX? That & Flag decision has caused lowest ratings EVER!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 6, 2020

Track officials and local police turned the investigation over to the FBI after a noose was found in Wallace’s No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports garage stall at Talladega Superspeedway on June 21.

Within days, the FBI determined the incident was not a federal crime. Based on the investigation, the FBI said the noose was used as a garage pull and was found in the same garage in October 2019.

NASCAR discovered the noose before Wallace was in Talladega and condemned the incident as a hate crime. NASCAR also banned the Confederate flag at all racetracks.

After the FBI report was released, Wallace said enraged fans became critical of him.

“I’m mad because people are trying to test my character,” he told CNN.

Drivers rushed to support Wallace and in a pre-race show of unity pushed the No. 43 car to the front of the grid. They remained supportive Monday when Trump’s tweet began making headlines. Tyler Reddick replied to Trump’s tweet with a message of his own: “We don’t need an apology. We did what was right and we will do just fine without your support.”

As for NASCAR’s ratings, a network executive said that viewership on Fox networks has increased 8 percent since returning from hiatus on May 17.



White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany defended Trump’s comments as being more broad.

“What the president is making is a broader point that this rush to judgment on the facts, before the facts, is unacceptable,” she said.

–Field Level Media (@FieldLevelMedia)