NASCAR CEO BRIAN FRANCE BUSTED FOR DUI & OXYCODONE

Revman said:
I hear you, but this is not the same thing. It has been proven because it is easy to prove. I know that the laws have encompassed make up application, eating, etc., yet we put bigger infotainment screens in our new cars. How many distracted driving cases have you heard of where the screen has been the culprit? I don't think laws addressing stupidity work frankly.
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I'm not sure I totally follow what you are saying but I better leave this subject alone before I pull the thread off track.
ps, I hate those touch screen displays in my vehicles, the back up camera is nice but the rest is a pain and requires to much attention to operate while driving.
 
gnomesayin said:
Very well stated and fair-minded post, @LewTheShoe. I have seen a few articles crediting Brian France for the 'unified' TV deal, and I have an honest, open question about that. Didn't the first unified TV deal that incorporated Fox, TNT, and NBC begin in 2001 after being negotiated and announced in 1999?
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Yes, the TV deal I was referring to is the 2001 deal, before BZF became CEO, because he was instrumental in developing the concept and executing it, according to widespread reports.

As for the question of Brian France ever returning to a position of real power in Nascar... I would be shocked if that happens. I realize he doesn't have an actual stake through the heart, but he is done. He was appointed by Bill Jr. and I think Jim and Lesa were reluctant to overturn that, but now Brian has done the overturning. Just my opinion.
 
Actions speak louder than words.

He answered the questions "Do you care about this sport?" and "Do you see yourself investing more time in it for the foreseeable future?" simultaneously in one foul swoop.
 
i blame this hole thing on the drinking game,one shot for ' the big three' and one pill for 'suarez'
 
How am I just now learning about this?! :eek:

I'm glad Brian France managed not to hurt anyone on the road despite his foolish decision to drive drunk.

.

With that out of the way, hopefully a new CEO can undo some of the disastrous changes (like playoffs) Brian France has implemented over the past 15 years!
 
LewTheShoe said:
Brian France has been an embarrassment to the founding family and to the entire Nascar industry for years. Jim France and Lesa Kennedy have been presented with an opportunity.
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For years they have always had the ability to negate any ideas presented by Brian and friends.
Brian is a hired hand and no longer has shares in Nascar.
 
Spotter22 said:
Wow- Read this. Written before Brians arrest:

http://www.atlanticbb.net/front_con...nchi_where_are_you_brian_france_come_home-tca
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Sad, but great article.
I've overstated this in the past but still believe it to be true.
NASCAR was the sport for the Saturday racers who dreamed and aspired to someday make "the show".
NASCAR was the sport for the beer drinkers(funny how many times that was mentioned in the article) Indy Car was the sport for the wine crowd...…….
I'd be willing to bet a lot of money that Brian wasn't drunk on Busch Light.
When the leader has disdain for the fans, the fans walk away. Hopefully we get someone who will connect. Are you listening Ben Kennedy???
 
Old 97 said:
Sad, but great article.
I've overstated this in the past but still believe it to be true.
NASCAR was the sport for the Saturday racers who dreamed and aspired to someday make "the show".
NASCAR was the sport for the beer drinkers(funny how many times that was mentioned in the article) Indy Car was the sport for the wine crowd...…….
I'd be willing to bet a lot of money that Brian wasn't drunk on Busch Light.
When the leader has disdain for the fans, the fans walk away. Hopefully we get someone who will connect. Are you listening Ben Kennedy???
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That article wasn't great. All they suggested was Brian have a hotdog and beer with some fans to fix the sport. Never understand why people think him being at the track is so important.
 
Old 97 said:
I apologize if this has been addressed already but...…

As members of this board we have more than just a passing interest in the sport and we may not all agree on any single subject(NEVER LOL)
My question is...……. Is there even one member here that feels that Brian should return to his position? Ever?
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Yes he should, one little mistake shouldn't cost him his position.
 
Simple Fan said:
That article wasn't great. All they suggested was Brian have a hotdog and beer with some fans to fix the sport. Never understand why people think him being at the track is so important.
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Not attending races demonstrates his complete disinterest in the sport. If you enjoy something, you participate in it. Imagine a college president who goes only to his office without visiting the rest of the campus or talking to students, a CEO in charge of a manufacturing company but never goes into a factory, a McDonald's exec who doesn't eat there even monthly.

Attending a race is a visceral experience. How can an exec understand his product if he doesn't see it, understand it's appeal if he talk to the customers? Obviously, he can't.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
Not attending races demonstrates his complete disinterest in the sport. If you enjoy something, you participate in it. Imagine a college president who goes only to his office without visiting the rest of the campus, a CEO in charge of a manufacturing company but never goes into a factory, a McDonald's exec who doesn't eat there even monthly.

Attending a race is a visceral experience. How can an exec understand his product if he doesn't see it, understand it's appeal if he talk to the customers? Obviously, he can't.
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The guy has been around racing his whole life. Its not like he's never been to the track. No need to be there every week.
 
Simple Fan said:
The guy has been around racing his whole life. Its not like he's never been to the track. No need to be there every week.
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His dad and granddad would beg to differ. Its ok to miss a few but he is away more often then not and when they are racing in NY and you are a couple hundred miles away in the Hamptons with a Private Jet at your disposal thats just disrespectful to the sport and family
 
Simple Fan said:
The guy has been around racing his whole life. Its not like he's never been to the track. No need to be there every week.
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It's probably been close to 30 years ago but I swear there was an article in Circle Track where Bill Jr. hinted at Lesa having more interest/ability in running NASCAR.
I'm not sure if she is at the track every week, but I respectfully disagree with your opinion of Brian and quite frankly am shocked.
 
Simple Fan said:
No need to be there every week.
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The guy's at the track maybe twice a year, if that often, and that's only because Daytona's adjacent to company headquarters. I don't expect him to be at every race, but I do expect somebody who enjoys the sport to be at the track more weekends than not, esp. when he has a guaranteed luxury box for free. Not being there frequently send the message he doesn't like racing. No business benefits from a CEO who doesn't like the product.
 
Spotter22 said:
His dad and granddad would beg to differ. Its ok to miss a few but he is away more often then not and when they are racing in NY and you are a couple hundred miles away in the Hamptons with a Private Jet at your disposal thats just disrespectful to the sport and family
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How is it disrespectful to the sport and his family? He doesn't need to be at the track to do his job.

Old 97 said:
It's probably been close to 30 years ago but I swear there was an article in Circle Track where Bill Jr. hinted at Lesa having more interest/ability in running NASCAR.
I'm not sure if she is at the track every week, but I respectfully disagree with your opinion of Brian and quite frankly am shocked.
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Not sure why you'd be shocked to see someone have a more realistic expectation for the job.
 
Simple Fan said:
How is it disrespectful to the sport and his family? He doesn't need to be at the track to do his job.



.
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He most certainly does need to be at the track to do his job just like Big Bill and Bill jr knew and they did. Its disrespectful as in being an absentee leader while the sport is obviously having issues.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
The guy's at the track maybe twice a year, if that often, and that's only because Daytona's adjacent to company headquarters. I don't expect him to be at every race, but I do expect somebody who enjoys the sport to be at the track more weekends than not, esp. when he has a guaranteed luxury box for free. Not being there frequently send the message he doesn't like racing. No business benefits from a CEO who doesn't like the product.
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Who says he enjoys racing? He doesn't need to enjoy it, just understand it enough to be able to sell the product. Which in my opinion between the TV deals and all the sponsors that have come through he's done a pretty good job a making NASCAR money.
 
Spotter22 said:
He most certainly does need to be at the track to do his job just like Big Bill and Bill jr knew and they did. Its disrespectful as in being an absentee leader while the sport is obviously having issues.
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He's not his father or grandfather nor should he be. The business has changed since their time as leaders. The only thing that's disrespectful is this incident but not being at the track isn't disrespectful.
 
I have been self employed for twenty two years. It is in my best interest to show up at the work site. Had Brian simply shown some interest and enthusiasm for the sport that made his family wealthy it would have been nice. Maybe some face time on tv occasionally to talk about what's going on currently. An aloof person that seems to have zero interest in his business is not good optics. And a lot of his actions could be attributed to his addictions. I wish him well, I hope he finds a purpose for his life. I hope he gets sober and can stay that way. And I hope NASCAR gets a leader at the top who cares about the sport. Not just someone that speaks in corporate jargon, and constantly spins whatever to sound good. I would love to see a racer at the helm. Somebody with a passion for cars, people and racing.
 
Simple Fan said:
Who says he enjoys racing? He doesn't need to enjoy it, just understand it enough to be able to sell the product. Which in my opinion between the TV deals and all the sponsors that have come through he's done a pretty good job a making NASCAR money.
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Good greif! That is insane. Yes he must like racing, has to love it. it is a prerequisite.
 
Brian absolutely needed to be at the track for at least 90% of the races. The teams expect it, I'm sure the sponsors expect it, and the fans should too. Whatever NASCASR does from Monday-Thursday, the sole purpose of the company is to put on events Friday-Sunday, and the boss needs to be there. All of the major sports commissioners spend a LOT of time going to games. How many F1 races did Bernie ever miss, and they were all over the world? When I was working in ARCA, I can't recall a single race in four seasons that Ron Drager was not there, even at the hole in the wall tracks that are no fun to be at. You lead by the example you set, and if you can't be bothered to show up, what message does that send to your employees, your business partners and your customers? Heck, how many Cup races does Roger Penske miss, and he is also competing in Indycar and IMSA, all the while running a big corporation, and Roger is what, 80 years old? My guess that combined with disinterest in the last few years, Brian may well have been too much in the bag to make it through a whole race weekend where people could see and interact with him and he would be less able to control what people saw.
 
Greg said:
The oxacodin just didn't magically appear. He was an addict.
It ain't just a drunk tank, drunk drivers kill daily. It is a crime.
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I could care less about the oxy, everyone has vices for life. He didn't kill anyone either.
 
Simple Fan said:
Something more than just a night in the drunk tank.
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You and Brian been keeping company? Y'all seem to think the same way. I think the problems this week will be the straw that broke the camels back. This one activity is very public in nature. There's no way to know what all has gone on that we don't know about. There is no justification for drunk driving. Wrong is wrong, and he couldn't have been more wrong. His position in life does not put him above the law. NASCAR needs new leadership. He just swung the door wide open for him to walk out and someone else to walk in. History will reflect his time at the top was not good for NASCAR.
 
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