NASCAR has released this photo of the garage pull-down rope in the formation of a noose that was hanging Sunday in the Bubba Wallace garage stall at Talladega Superspeedway.
A Richard Petty Motorsports crewman found the noose and notified Wallace crew chief Jerry Baxter, who took a photo of the noose before it was cut down.
NASCAR called the FBI on Monday, and 15 agents went to the track to talk to crew members prior to the race, which had been postponed from Sunday. The FBI announced that the investigation determined the noose was in the stall as early as October 2019. NASCAR has said that other garage pull ropes it examined Sunday night were not tied in that formation.
“The FBI report concludes, and photographic evidence confirms, that the garage door pull rope fashioned like a noose had been positioned there since as early as last fall,” NASCAR said in a statement Tuesday.
“This was obviously well before the 43 team’s arrival and garage assignment. We appreciate the FBI’s quick and thorough investigation and are thankful to learn that this was not an intentional, racist act against Bubba.”
Photo: Getty Images