NASCAR Steering To The Left, Rejects “Let’s Go, Brandon” Chants – Deadline

NASCAR president Steve Phelps said Friday that the organization does not want to be associated with the “Let’s go, Brandon” movement, a song often heard at its events and others in the South and Midwest.

Phelps said NASCAR will pursue any illegal use of its trademarks on merchandise with the slogan that has begun to sprout.

“We will pursue who (who uses logos) and get those things,” Phelps said in reports. “It’s not okay. It’s not okay for you to use our trademarks illegally, whether or not we agree with the position.”

NASCAR was the unintentional zero point of the “Let’s go, Brandon” movement. NBC Sports reporter Kelli Stavast interviewed the winning driver Brandon Brown on his first NASCAR victory of his career when the audience broke into a song about “F ** k Joe Biden.”

Stavast had either mistakenly or agilely tried to avoid an FCC fine for using one of the words that cannot be said on television. She told Brown that the crowd shouted “Let’s go, Brandon,” and see, a legend was born.

The term has been picked up as a replacement for its more vulgar cousin and has been mainstreamed by the media and more cautious people.

“It’s an unfortunate situation, and I feel for Brandon, I feel for Kelli,” Phelps said. “Unfortunately, I think it talks about where we are as a country. We do not want to associate with politics, left or right. “

But Phelps’ statement flies in the light of past NASCAR history. President Donald Trump was the honorary starter at the Daytona 500 in 2020 and was enthusiastically received. NASCAR drivers have also performed at Trump rallies, and some have spoken.

NASCAR also came out strongly with questions of social justice last year, banning the display of the Confederate flag, a long-standing fixture at its events.

Phelps claimed that NASCAR respects the presidency.

“Do we like that it kind of started with NASCAR and then wins elsewhere? No, we are not happy about that,” Phelps said.