from the EDITOR FIGHTIN’ WORDS

By Justin Zoch

BEFORE YOU READ ON, I owe you a disclosure – I’ve never been in a fist fight of any kind, never been punched and, also, I’ve never driven a race car. So, if those confessions make it impossible for you to take my opinion in this column seriously or, worse yet, might make you want to punch a wall, turn the page.

The last month has featured two prominent examples of public violence, one about as far from our sport as you can get and one at the highest level of our sport. Will Smith slapping Chris Rock after a joke was about the dumbest thing you’ll ever see on TV and Ty Gibbs and Sam Mayer throwing haymakers, while one of them is wearing a helmet, is similarly stupid. I think a stupid act like that should be punished severely, certainly more so than it is now.

I know we’re in the entertainment industry and I also realize that racing is a highly emotional sport. I get it. Racing is one of the few sports where you can literally lose everything – your life savings or your life – because of someone else’s mistake. I can see where that would make you want to seek retribution or maybe just kind of lose your mind for a second. I’ve got a temper, too. But, that doesn’t mean we have to glorify it, right?

There seems to be a movement in the sport that wants to make confrontations more public, going back to NASCAR’s infamous “Have at it, boys” comment a few years back. We’ve all heard it at several racetracks over the years that, and I’m paraphrasing, “there is no fighting allowed in the pits but you’re welcome to come fight on the frontstretch so everyone can see.” I’ve laughed at that joke many times and I’ve certainly left my seat to see punches thrown or ran through a crowded pit area to see what all the fuss was about at someone’s trailer.

Fighting at the racetrack is one of those things that should go by the wayside and shouldn’t be encouraged. There are plenty of ways to show your personality, your emotion and to entertain without committing assault and battery. As I said, I’m not trying to pass judgment on anyone or anyone’s actions and plenty of guys that have thrown a punch at a racetrack are certainly at the top of my heroes list.

does this at a racetrack?

Sure, there’s the argument that if you don’t take care of it with fists in the pits, they’ll take care of it of with cars on the track. This is the same tired argument you get from hockey fans that the only way to protect players is to send your goon out to fight their goon to protect the non-goons. There has to be a better way. I’d argue if anyone is so emotional that the only way they can control their anger towards another racer is to hit them, they probably need to leave the car in the hauler for a spell. Obviously, any on track retaliation needs to be dealt with even more severely.

The tolerance for physical altercations should be over and we should make the punishments fit the crime, which, you know, it actually is.

However, I would advocate for very stiff penalties going forward at every level. It just can’t be acceptable anymore, right?

I’ve never once seen someone throw a punch at a bar or get into a fight on the street and think “Wow, that guy is awesome. What a winning personality!” No, I think, “What a ridiculous meathead. Throw him out of here.” Can we not do the same thing, or at the very least, think the same thing about someone who