Stock car racing has always been an aggressive sport with cutthroat competition and rivalry between drivers. But seldom throughout history has this nature transformed into unethical racing or the lack of basic respect until today. Many drivers have been coming under fire recently for displaying questionable racing tactics to get better results.
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This could be solved with penalties and fines if the cases were a few and isolated to particular names. But this trend is spreading across series and racing disciplines.
One of the biggest icons who has been worried about this is Greg Biffle. The former superstar spoke about the lack of civility in NASCAR today and made a plea to the active drivers.
He said, “My principle when it comes to driving is it doesn’t take any talent whatsoever or any skill to just wreck another guy. We can all go to the go-kart track on Friday night or whatever, and you can just plow into the guy in front of you and knock him out of the way. Run him into the guardrail and go. Anyone can do that.”
But what anyone can’t do is race against others cleanly and win. Biffle is clear about the fact that rubbing is racing. He wants to see drivers making contact, pushing cars, and shoving them. But he also sees a line where it must all stop.
The issue is that today’s drivers don’t have an idea of where that line is. “Intentionally parking a guy doesn’t take a lot of skill. It’s disrespectful,” he concluded.
Why was Greg Biffle not inducted into the Hall of Fame?
55 years old now, Biffle was one of NASCAR’s finest back in the day. He reached Victory Lane 19 times in the Cup Series and won the 2002 Busch Series championship.
He also made the headlines following the devastating impact of Hurricane Helene, for his excellent work in helping those affected. Notably, Biffle used his helicopter to send supplies to and receive communication from stranded people.
It was a rather shocking revelation that he wasn’t included in the final list of those getting inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2026, despite being in contention.
But former driver Kyle Petty explained the reason for his omission on Fast Talk. “I am a firm believer that the Hall of Fame should be about what you do on the race track,” he said.
He did not view Biffle’s achievements in racing as worthy enough for him to get inducted into the Hall of Fame as of yet. He also made the point that the honor in question wasn’t to be included in a “Humanitarian Hall of Fame”. Hopefully, Biffle’s name will stand tall in the hall someday. But until then, drivers will do well to remember his words on respect.
