Richard Petty
FILE - In this March 1, 2020, file photo, Jimmie Johnson is introduced to the crowd during activities as he carries his youngest daughter Lydia as his oldest daughter Genevieve and wife Chandra follow prior to a NASCAR Cup Series auto race in Fontana, Calif. This year has hardly been the farewell tour Jimmie Johnson envisioned when he said 2020 would be his final season of full-time NASCAR racing. The seven-time champion has had to say his goodbyes at empty race tracks absent of all fanfare and now his streak of 663 consecutive races has ended because Johnson tested positive for the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Will Lester, File)
Column: Jimmie Johnson finds voice during last NASCAR season

By Jenna Fryer Jul. 07, 2020 01:27 PM EDT

FILE - In this Jan. 11, 2017, file photo, former NBA player and players union deputy Roger Mason, left, listens as entertainer Ice Cube, right, announces the launch of the BIG3, a new 3-on-3 professional basketball league, in New York. Hundreds of sports-related businesses got in line for the government-funded Payroll Protection Plan designed to cushion the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. None of the four North American major sports leagues — the NFL, NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball — applied, but both Major League Soccer and the National Women's Soccer League were represented. Rapper Ice Cube's 3-on-3 basketball league says it returned almost half of the $1.6 million it received, but givebacks were rare. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)
Sports jumps on PPP bandwagon, but big leagues take a pass

By The Associated Press Jul. 06, 2020 10:07 PM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 16, 2020, file photo, President Donald Trump speaks before the start of the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona International Speedway, Sunday n Daytona Beach, Fla. NASCAR’s layered relationship with Trump took a sharp turn Monday, July 6, 2020, when Trump blasted the series for banning the Confederate flag and wrongly accused the sport’s only full-time Black driver of perpetrating “a hoax” when a crew member found a noose in the team garage stall.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
Trump sideswipes NASCAR, Wallace over flag and noose

By Jill Colvin And Jenna Fryer Jul. 06, 2020 10:09 AM EDT

NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Kyle Weatherman drives through a turn during practice for the NASCAR Xfinity Series auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Friday, July 3, 2020. The car carries the hashtag #standfortheFlag and features a We Stand for the National Anthem paint scheme. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Paint schemes go political as NASCAR season heats up

By Michael Marot Jul. 03, 2020 06:12 PM EDT

Kevin Harvick celebrates in the winners circle after winning the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Pocono Raceway, Saturday, June 27, 2020, in Long Pond, Pa. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Column: NASCAR rolls on, through crisis and controversy

By Jenna Fryer Jun. 29, 2020 02:47 PM EDT

This photo provided by NASCAR shows the noose found in the garage stall of Black driver Bubba Wallace at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Ala., on Sunday, June 21, 2020. The discovery prompted a federal investigation that determined the rope had been there since at least last October. (NASCAR via AP)
Wallace, NASCAR's agent of change, doing 'what feels right'

By Dan Gelston Jun. 26, 2020 05:43 PM EDT

Michael McDowell (34), Bubba Wallace (43) and Chris Buescher (17) ride side-by-side during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega Ala., Monday, June 22, 2020. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Blaney wins at Talladega after NASCAR unites behind Wallace

By John Zenor Jun. 22, 2020 03:30 PM EDT

Nascar drivers Kyle Busch, left, and Corey LaJoie, right, join other drivers and crews as they push the car of Bubba Wallace to the front of the field prior to the start of the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at the Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega Ala., Monday June 22, 2020. In an extraordinary act of solidarity with NASCAR’s only Black driver, dozens of drivers pushed the car belonging to Bubba Wallace to the front of the field before Monday’s race as FBI agents nearby tried to find out who left a noose in his garage stall over the weekend. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
NASCAR rallies around Wallace as FBI investigates noose

By Jenna Fryer Jun. 22, 2020 02:09 AM EDT

Bubba Wallace stands for the national anthem before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race Sunday, June 14, 2020, in Homestead, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Noose found in stall of Bubba Wallace at Alabama NASCAR race

By John Zenor Jun. 21, 2020 04:14 PM EDT

Fans dot the stands prior to a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega Ala., Sunday, June 21, 2020. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
NASCAR race at Talladega Superspeedway postponed by rain

By John Zenor Jun. 21, 2020 03:34 PM EDT

Driver Bubba Wallace is interviewed before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race Wednesday, June 10, 2020, in Martinsville, Va. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
AP Interview: NASCAR'S Bubba Wallace finds voice

By Jenna Fryer Jun. 12, 2020 04:57 PM EDT

Denny Hamlin (11) and Kyle Busch (18) come through a turn during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race Wednesday, June 10, 2020, in Martinsville, Va. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Truex ends 2020 winless skid with victory at Martinsville

Jun. 10, 2020 11:03 PM EDT

FILE - In this Sept. 5, 2015, file photo, a Confederate flag flies in the infield before a NASCAR Xfinity auto race at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, S.C. Bubba Wallace, the only African-American driver in the top tier of NASCAR, calls for a ban on the Confederate flag in the sport that is deeply rooted in the South. (AP Photo/Terry Renna, File)
NASCAR bans Confederate flag from its races, venues

By Dan Gelston Jun. 10, 2020 04:55 PM EDT

A NASCAR official kneels during the national anthem before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday, June 7, 2020, in Hampton, Ga. NASCAR paused before Sunday’s Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway to acknowledge the country’s social unrest. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Ban the Confederate flag? NASCAR could see the end of an era

By Dan Gelston Jun. 09, 2020 04:53 PM EDT

FILE - In this Oct. 28, 2006, file photo, Chase Miller slides his Dodge past an old Georgia flag and a Confederate stars on bars flag during running of a NASCAR Truck series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga. NASCAR has a checkered racial history, from a long-time affinity for Confederate flags among the fan base to a driver losing his job just this season for casually uttering a racial epitaph. (AP Photo/Craig Hellman, File)
NASCAR looks to steer clear of protests over George Floyd

By Paul Newberry Jun. 06, 2020 11:13 AM EDT

Kyle Busch stands for the playing of the national anthem before the start of the NASCAR Cup Series auto race Sunday, May 17, 2020, in Darlington, S.C. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Busch and Elliott incident could spark new NASCAR rivalry

By Jenna Fryer May. 21, 2020 04:02 PM EDT

People leave the infield at Darlington Raceway after the NASCAR Xfinity series auto race was postponed because of rain Tuesday, May 19, 2020, in Darlington, S.C. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Rain postpones Xfinity Series' return at Darlington

By Pete Iacobelli May. 19, 2020 06:10 PM EDT

Matt Kenseth waits for the start of the NASCAR Cup Series auto race Sunday, May 17, 2020, in Darlington, S.C. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Kevin Harvick looks to sweep NASCAR's return at Darlington

By Jenna Fryer May. 19, 2020 03:43 PM EDT

FILE - In this Wednesday, July 4, 1984, file photo, Firecracker 400 winner Richard Petty showers the crowd with champagne in Victory Lane at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. It's weeknight racing at Darlington as NASCAR's comeback from the coronavirus continues with its first Wednesday race in 36 years on May 20, 2020. (AP Photo/Jann Zlotkin, File)
Primetime: NASCAR set for first Wednesday start since 1984

By Pete Iacobelli May. 19, 2020 01:16 PM EDT

Alex Bowman (88) makes a pit stop during the NASCAR Cup Series auto race Sunday, May 17, 2020, in Darlington, S.C. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Column: NASCAR managed small miracle in problem-free return

By Jenna Fryer May. 18, 2020 06:03 PM EDT