When a NASCAR driver wins at the Nashville Superspeedway this weekend, he will be awarded with a brand new custom-made Gibson Les Paul guitar. The six strings were designed by Sam Bass, the legendary artist who died in 2019 at the age of 57. With the sport returning to Nashville, which is known as the Music City, his legacy is once again honored by the presentation of the guitar.
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When NASCAR reached the shores of Tennessee’s capital back in 2001, Bass had already acquired the prestige of being the sport’s first official licensed artist. His association with Gibson led to the creation of limited-edition guitars featuring Dale Earnhardt Jr, Richard Petty, and others. This made him the natural choice for designing the track’s signature trophy.
“The Nashville guitar trophy became one of the most sought-after trophies on the Truck and Xfinity circuits,” Denise Bass, his wife, said to the track media in 2021. “The limited-edition driver guitars and especially the Nashville guitars paved the way for NASCAR banquet trophies and Daytona pre-race presentations. Having designed hundreds of guitars during his career, Sam’s desire was to create one that provided a broader canvas.”
Being the ground zero for the music industry, it was also sensible that the track kept the tradition of awarding a guitar alive even after Bass passed away. Erik Moses, the former president of the track, said in a statement that they could never recreate what Bass offered track champions and that it was why they wanted to continue presenting the timeless guitars to winners.
The story behind Kyle Busch smashing a Les Paul guitar in Nashville in 2009
After Busch won an Xfinity Series race at the track in 2009, he shocked everyone by smashing his guitar on the ground. While many took it as an insult to Bass, the driver had not meant any disrespect. He said that he was just trying to break it in a rock-n-roll fashion so that he could give its pieces to his crew members. Eventually, he did do that despite the backlash.
Kyle Busch drove to victory at Nashville Superspeedway in 2009, then smashed a guitar in Victory Lane. pic.twitter.com/irCJ9WDfkb
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) June 17, 2021
The experience led to him refraining from such an act when he won a guitar once again, in 2021. Interestingly, Busch had ordered multiple replicas from Bass himself and had also made significant contributions to the music programs in Nashville. Three guitars will be given out this weekend with all three NASCAR tiers set to race.
