COVID-19 and the issue of race encapsulated at Bristol Motor Speedway

Two topics currently in the public eye were encapsulated in one night at Bristol Motor Speedway on Wednesday night.

First, the track received positive reviews from NASCAR and the more than estimated 20,000 fans who created the largest sporting event crowd since the pandemic at the 35th All-Star Race held in Tennessee due to COVID restrictions in North Carolina.

The quest for racial equality was also on display as the Sons of Confederate Veterans made their presence known once again by paying to have a plane fly over the BMS campus with a banner that included a Confederate flag.

Last month, the group paid to fly a banner over the Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama that said ‘Defund NASCAR’ after the stock car league banned the flag at all tracks and events.

That move came after black driver Bubba Wallace called for the sport and its historic connection to the flag to come to an end following the death of George Floyd.

(BMS / SMI / Facebook)