An offseason NASCAR radio show took a bizarre turn Tuesday night when suspended driver Jeremy Mayfield called in to confront NASCAR CEO Brian France on the air. Mayfield, who spent more than three years fighting a NASCAR-imposed suspension after he tested positive for methamphetamines, placed a call to the Motor Racing Network’s NASCAR Live show as France made a guest appearance.
The driver, who said he was considering a plea deal this week over multiple felony charges, got his call put through to France and host Eli Gold, who welcomed him to the show.
“I thought I would just call in and see how you guys were doing, Brian, Eli,” Mayfield said. “Haven’t been around much to talk to you guys lately, and just wanted to ask Brian if he’s willing to accept the fact I’d like to come back racing and if we could sit down and talk about it and figure out what we need to do to make that work.”
“Well, Jeremy, you know the path back for you it’s the path back for anybody,” [France] said. “I’ve always hoped you would choose the right path and not litigation and a bunch of other things, but that’s up to you and you have a welcome mat out anytime you want. There’s a stated process that AJ Allmendinger just went through and we welcomed him back, and it’s terrific. That’s up to you.”
Mayfield quickly got off the air after France’s response. “OK, well, I appreciate that,” Mayfield said. “I didn’t mean to bother you on the show, but it’s the only way I could get ahold of you and I figured it would be a great opportunity to do that.” (USA Today)
