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NASCAR CEO Brian France owes Carl Long an apology, and a full pardon
Little guy Carl Long gets the NASCAR boot in the face. (Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)
By Mike Mulhern
mikemulhern.net
It's a sad day for the sport of NASCAR racing.
A very sad and embarrassing day.
What a blunder.
Heartless, how else to describe it.
Tuesday's decision by NASCAR's appeals board to grind its boot in Carl Long's face, by upholding the sport's biggest penalty ever, is simply outrageous.
I wish David Poole were here to vent about this.
But then there are no newspapers covering NASCAR any more, virtually no independent journalists left on the beat to raise a cry in defense of the little guys like Carl Long.
NASCAR's actions in the Carl Long situation are simply unreasonable, even unconscionable.
NASCAR executives have shown again that they are hopelessly out of touch with the real world.
Bullies.
Exactly the right word to describe NASCAR officials in this situation.
Commonsense is such a rare commodity in the NASCAR garage, yes…..
But this….
There is simply no excuse for this decision.
About the only hope now for Daytona sports' executives to extricate themselves from this PR nightmare, to regain even a bit of respect, is for NASCAR CEO Brian France to immediately rescind the entire series of penalties and grant Long a pardon and welcome him back to the Cup garage.
And France ought to do it in person, not just with some letter or edict.
Anything less than a full, complete recission is simply unacceptable.
Carl Long is one of this sport's good guys. Loyal to the sport for more than 20 years. Diligent. Hard working. One of the little guys who makes this sport work.
NASCAR executives seem to have forgotten who built this sport.
It was little guys like Carl Long.
But then NASCAR seems to be doing its best to make life as rough as possible on the little guys in the sport. There have been too many examples in recent weeks.
All Carl Long wanted to do at Charlotte's Lowe's Motor Speedway two weeks ago was run in the All-star preliminary. Not to win it, certainly. Just to race in it. When the engine at question failed during practice, Long could easily have just packed his stuff and gone home, and NASCAR wouldn't have had to check the engine. Indeed, if Long had even thought the engine might not be right, he certainly wouldn't have handed it over for inspection. Not a case here of someone trying to slip something by.
Maybe we should recall NASCAR's handling of Michael Waltrip's illegal gas additives at Daytona a few years back…and NASCAR's handling of Jeff Gordon's Daytona car for being too low…..
A double-standard of justice? One for this sport's stars, another for the rest of the guys?
You can decide.
Hand it to NASCAR to bring out a sledgehammer to swat a fly.
So just when you might have thought NASCAR execs were starting to get their act back together comes this – Carl Long, the harshest penalty in NASCAR history.
The NASCAR death penalty.
Upheld.
Shameful.
How can these guys sleep at night?
Thank you for exposing the
Thank you for exposing the NASCAR BULLIES for what they are, Psychopathic Egomaniacs!!! And they wonder WHY... former fans are leaving in droves... in disgust! Daaaah... Fairness IS... An American Core Value!
Arrogance. Arrogance is a
Arrogance.
Arrogance is a great sedative.
Arrogance in believing everything you do is the best without question allows you to sleep well at night.
B.F. has a B.S. degree in arrogance.
Unfortunately, it is his ball and if you want to play, he's the rules maker.
Brian France and NASCAR are
Brian France and NASCAR are as consistent as a debris caution when a Hendrick car needs a lucky dog or is about to go a lap down. First it was the Chase nonsense which IMO has killed the sport to heartless decisions such as this.
I am completely fed up with NASCAR. Thousands upon thousands of dollars spent buying sponsors' products to help support the sport not to mention the hours reading, listening and watching. This is what the sport has come to. No mega money, no voice. Stay at home is the message being sent to guys like Carl Long.
The message being sent to me the fan is take your dollar elsewhere. Brian France and Mike Helton, I get the message loud and clear.
Brian France. His dad and
Brian France. His dad and granddad would be ashamed.
The France in charge only
The France in charge only cares about the everloving dollar. He and "the hanging gang" don't deal with concern for others, just again the dollar.
NA$CAR hasn't forgotten the
NA$CAR hasn't forgotten the way this sport was built by the little guys, they never understood they were there anyway.
This deal with Carl Long is so far from any point proving, any bit of reality, that only NA$CAR could pull it off and sleep at night. This is their normal mode of operation, has been from the beginning. I do go back a ways, I remember Wendell Scott having a win taken away until the crowd left, I remember Bill Elliott being told not to stink up the show or he wouldn't be allowed to play, I remember a dead wrong call against Tommy Ellis that stood just as a reminder of who was ruling the roost.
The green back dollar is the only loyalty that Daytona has. This deal with Carl and his crew chief is dead assed wrong in every shape or form.
Mike Mulhern you are the
Mike Mulhern you are the best! Finally someone stepped and told it like it is and should be. Thank you!!! I am officially done with supporting the mental midgets that are ruining a once great sport. I urge others to petition and then boycott NASCAR until someone in charge wakes up and smells the burnt motor oil. Keep up the good work Mike.
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