The NASCAR Cup Series will continue its season without one of its rookies after driver Noah Gragson received an indefinite suspension on Saturday due to offensive activity on social media, according to multiple reports.
NASCAR and Gragson’s team Legacy Motor Club reportedly disciplined the 25-year-old for “liking an insensitive meme with a photo of George Floyd’s face,” per ESPN and the Associated Press. Floyd, who died in 2020, was a 46-year-old Black man whose strangulation death at the hands of a white Minneapolis police officer ignited social justice movements across the country.
Both organizations issued separate statements announcing Gragson has been placed under an indefinite suspension due to his social media activity, but declined to disclose any additional details. NASCAR’s only confirmation of Gragson’s violation came after it announced his suspension, stating on Twitter he “violated the Member Conduct section of the 2023 NASCAR Rule Book.”
Gragson later addressed the discipline on Twitter in a response to Legacy Motor Club, whom he joined earlier this year. In its statement, Legacy Motor Club noted Gragson has been suspended over actions that “do not represent the values of our team.”
Wrote Gragson, “I am disappointed in myself for my lack of attention and actions on social media. I understand the severity of this situation. I love and appreciate everyone. I try to treat everyone equally no matter who they are. I messed up plain and simple.”
I am disappointed in myself for my lack of attention and actions on social media.
— Noah Gragson (@NoahGragson) August 5, 2023
I understand the severity of this situation.
I love and appreciate everyone.
I try to treat everyone equally no matter who they are. I messed up plain and simple. https://t.co/PCX6iMJxRF
A native of Las Vegas, Gragson is currently ranked No. 33 in points (199) after 22 starts in his first full season in the Cup series. He recently finished 28th in his last race on July 30 at the NASCAR Cup Series at Richmond.
