Congresswoman calls on NASCAR to suspend Kurt Busch

By Nov 14, 2014, 1:29 PM EST
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With former Sprint Cup champion Kurt Busch facing allegations of domestic assault, California congresswoman Jackie Speier (Democrat, House of Representatives) has called upon NASCAR to suspend him.

In a letter to NASCAR President Mike Helton and Stewart-Haas Racing co-owners Tony Stewart and Gene Haas, Speier said that she was “disappointed” that neither the sanctioning body nor SHR have taken any actions as of now, and that such decisions were “totally inadequate.”

The full letter can be found here and references several of Busch’s past “anger management issues,” including his blow-up at ESPN reporter Dr. Jerry Punch at the 2011 season finale and his suspension for the June 2012 race at Pocono following a post-race tirade at Dover toward Sporting News reporter Bob Pockrass.

Speier also brings up how NASCAR chose not to suspend Travis Kvapil after he was charged with misdemeanors of false imprisonment and assault in the fall of 2013; this past February, Kvapil pleaded guilty as part of an agreement where the case will be dismissed if he serves two years of probation and does some community service.

The final paragraph has Speier urging Helton, Stewart, and Haas to suspend Busch for this weekend’s Ford Ecoboost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway and “adopt a policy going forward in all domestic violence cases to suspend drivers until criminal proceedings end or there is a clear lack of evidence.”

NASCAR Chairman Brian France addressed the subject during his press conference today at Homestead.

“What’s not lost on us by any stretch is the rightful heightened awareness on domestic abuse and violence, and so you can expect our policies to reflect the understandable awareness that that’s not going to be tolerated,” he said.

“The past of how any league might have handled some of this is one thing. It’s pretty clear when you see what’s happening around the country and in some of the other leagues that our policy will reflect the significance and importance that it should.”

As for Speier’s letter, France said he was not surprised to see members of Congress having “strong views on what what we should and shouldn’t do” considering the heightened awareness of domestic violence in recent times.

However, he feels the sanctioning body needs to let the ongoing investigation play out before it makes a decision to punish him.

“We are watching that case carefully, and they are – it’s under review by law enforcement and others, and they have not made a decision on that regarding Kurt,” he said. “So until they make some judgments on that investigation, it wouldn’t be right of us to just intervene before they’ve even gotten the investigation completed. So that’s our position.

“We’ll respect their process. It’s in their hands.”

Busch has not yet been charged formally with any crime.

In court documents, Busch’s ex-girlfriend, Patricia Driscoll, has stated that on Sept. 26 at Dover International Speedway, Busch verbally abused her and then slammed her head against a wall three times inside his motorhome before she escaped to a nearby bus.

Busch’s attorney has called the allegations a “complete fabrication,” while Haas himself has said he would not pull Busch out of the No. 41 SHR Chevrolet.

Ford unveils a new Mustang for 2024 Le Mans in motorsports ‘lifestyle brand’ retooling

Associated PressJun 9, 2023, 7:00 PM EDT
Ford Mustang Le Mans
Ford Performance
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LE MANS, France — Ford has planned a return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans with its iconic Mustang muscle car next year under a massive rebranding of Ford Performance aimed at bringing the automotive manufacturer “into the racing business.”

The Friday unveil of the new Mustang Dark Horse-based race car follows Ford’s announcement in February (and a ballyhooed test at Sebring in March) that it will return to Formula One in 2026 in partnership with reigning world champion Red Bull.

The Mustang will enter the GT3 category next year with at least two cars in both IMSA and the World Endurance Championship, and is hopeful to earn an invitation to next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. The IMSA entries will be a factory Ford Performance program run by Multimatic, and a customer program in WEC with Proton Competition.

Ford CEO Jim Farley, also an amateur sports car racer, told The Associated Press the Mustang will be available to compete in various GT3 series across the globe to customer teams. But more important, Farley said, is the overall rebranding of Ford Performance – done by renowned motorsports designer Troy Lee – that is aimed at making Ford a lifestyle brand with a sporting mindset.

“It’s kind of like the company finding its own, and rediscovering its icons, and doubling down on them,” Farley told the AP. “And then this motorsports activity is getting serious about connecting enthusiast customers with those rediscovered icons. It’s a big switch for the company – this is really about building strong, iconic vehicles with enthusiasts at the center of our marketing.”

Ford last competed in sports car racing in 2019 as part of a three-year program with Chip Ganassi Racing. The team scored the class win at Le Mans in 2016 in a targeted performance aimed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ford snapping Ferrari’s six-year winning streak.

Ford on Friday displayed a Mustang with a Lee-designed livery that showcased the cleaner, simplified look that will soon be featured on all its racing vehicles. The traditional blue oval with Ford Performance in white lettering underneath will now be branded simply FP.

The new mark will be used across car liveries, merchandise and apparel, display assets, parts and accessories and in advertising.

Farley cited Porsche as an automaker that has successfully figured out how to sell cars to consumers and race cars in various series around the world while creating a culture of brand enthusiasts. He believes Ford’s new direction will help the company sell street cars, race cars, boost interest in driving schools, and create a merchandise line that convinces consumers that a stalwart of American automakers is a hip, cool brand.

“We’re going to build a global motorsports business off road and on road,” Farley told the AP, adding that the design of the Mustang is “unapologetically American.”

He lauded the work of Lee, who is considered the top helmet designer among race car drivers.

“We’re in the first inning of a nine inning game, and going to Le Mans is really important,” Farley said. “But for customer cars, getting the graphics right, designing race cars that win at all different levels, and then designing a racing brand for Ford Performance that gets rebranded and elevated is super important.”

He said he’s kept a close eye on how Porsche and Aston Martin have built their motorsports businesses and said Ford will be better.

“We’re going in the exact same direction. We just want to be better than them, that’s all,” Farley said. “Second is the first loser.”

Farley, an avid amateur racer himself, did not travel to Le Mans for the announcement. The race that begins Saturday features an entry from NASCAR, and Ford is the reigning Cup Series champion with Joey Logano and Team Penske.

The NASCAR “Garage 56” entry is a collaboration between Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet and Goodyear, and is being widely celebrated throughout the industry. Farley did feel left out of the party in France – a sentiment NASCAR tried to avoid by inviting many of its partners to attend the race so that it wouldn’t seem like a Chevrolet-only celebration.

“They’re going right and I’m going left – that NASCAR thing is a one-year deal, right? It’s Garage 56 and they can have their NASCAR party, but that’s a one-year party,” Farley said. “We won Le Mans outright four times, we won in the GT class, and we’re coming back with Mustang and it’s not a one-year deal.

“So they can get all excited about Garage 56. I almost see that as a marketing exercise for NASCAR, but for me, that’s a science project,” Farley continued. “I don’t live in a world of science projects. I live in the world of building a vital company that everyone is excited about. To do that, we’re not going to do a Garage 56 – I’ve got to beat Porsche and Aston Martin and Ferrari year after year after year.”

Ford’s announcement comes on the heels of General Motors changing its GT3 strategy next season and ending its factory Corvette program. GM, which unlike Ford competes in the IMSA Grand Touring Prototype division (with its Cadillac brand), will shift fully to a customer model for Corvettes in 2024 (with some factory support in the IMSA GTD Pro category).