October 22, 2020 • 49 mins
Click here to subscribe directly to the Lights Out with Shawne Merriman podcast! In this episode of the Lights Out Podcast with Shawne Merriman, Shawne speaks with NASCAR driver Jesse Iwuji. Shawne and Jesse talk about Jesse's early days playing ball at NAVY, serving two tours and how he eventually got into racing. Did you know that Shawne was a owner in NASCAR? The guys break down how they met, and how Shawne's only job was not to drop the green flag!. This is a well informed and fun interview with two guys that never stop moving things forward.
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
I'm John Gonzalez, the host of s i s new podcast,
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Boom boom boom, out go the lights. This is Lights
(01:26):
Out with Sean Merriman. What's up, guys, We're back again
on the Lights Off podcast with me Seawan Merriman. We
have a special to guest today, one of my former
drivers in NASCAR. We've taken all the way to NASCAR today,
Jesse and Wouji Uh former football player and went to Navy. Uh.
(01:46):
I always get on him. He was he was okay,
He was okay though he was he was really good, Uh,
defensive back. But just my involvement in NASCAR over the years. Um,
I give a really funny story about how I got
started in NASCAR being invited out two thousand eight by
the Richard Pettis Group and Uh, I was the Grand
Marshal to the Fontana Race. And I came up and
(02:08):
I had no idea about Nascar. Remember I'm from Maryland, Washington,
d C. Area. I got no idea other than watching
NASCAR on TV. It looks like a bunch of fast
cars going to circles. And Uh, I was in for
a treat two thousand eighteen, grand Marshal of the Fontana Races.
And I'll tell you if one of my most nerve
wrecking days because I had no idea there was gonna
be sixty plus thousand people there at the track. I
(02:31):
had no idea that getting up there that close on
the tract and filling those cars and the energy was
gonna make me nervous where I almost dropped the damn flag.
So bringing in Jesse Wilgio, we almost Also, we're gonna
talk to about the Dallas Cowboys, man, that's his favorite team,
and some of the things that coming out of the
locker room and Mike McCarthy uh coming out interview today
(02:52):
saying that guys should be talking to him direct if
their men. So, um, we we jumped from NASCAR to football.
It's gonna be a really good show. Jesse Wilgi, Jesse,
what's going on? Man? Nothing much, you know, just living life.
You know, ain't nothing cooking over here but the chicken
in the pot. But the chicken would be cooking if
the water wasn't hot. You know what. I knew he
(03:14):
was gonna start something, saying saying something right because you look,
because I know you've been up and you've been up
since since five thirty already, and you probably accomplished fifteen
thousand things already. So it's a few things you can
take off that trash, that trash Navy shirts. You want
to go Navy beat Army. And we almost be that
(03:37):
one year two that five. I think you had just graduated,
but we almost be. I was. I was still I
hadn't gotten to Nable kept me yet, I was still
a year away. But we got close. We got close,
and then a corner that we had missed a tackle
with one of your running backs. Next you know, you
know that fourth down or whatever it was converted, and
then we lost the game. I remember that game and
the reason why it is because that was kind of
(03:58):
like the drop off us. It was like wet to Navy.
But you know what teams like Navy was always tough, tough, Yeah,
that was that was always a problem. Like we had
a we had We always had a problem with Temple.
We had a problem you know, Navy, any any one
of the scrappy schools. I mean we used to sometime
(04:18):
go and have problems with Duke when this is before
they actually got good. It was just one of those
scrappy teams that always give it a problem with. Yes,
to tell people a little bit about before we jump
into all all your NASCAR stuff, but um, your football
and playing you know when you know what years did
you go to play football at Navy and how how
did you get there? Yeah, so originally from Dallas, Texas,
(04:40):
and I grew up there. Both my parents came from
Nigeria to the US, so we didn't have you know,
football wasn't something in our family. UM, you know, and
not like my dad or my grandparents or anybody played
football before. It was really uh, me and my two
brothers and my sister. My sister probably could have played football, honestly,
but both of my brothers and us we we all
played football in Dallas said you know, as you know,
(05:00):
high school football in Texas is huge. So UM, I
had a big goal to go off to college and
play college football. So it worked really hard to put
myself in a position to get recruited UM, and finally
by my junior senior year start getting recruited by a
few schools, and UM Naval Academy was the best of
the bunch. So I just looked at it as a
great opportunity to go to a really good school get
a great education. UM played football for a team that
(05:22):
was winning a lot of games, and UM be able
to have a career. UM as an officer and the
Navy after after I graduated. So it was just a
win in all different ways. UM. So once to Naval Academy,
got their two thousand six UM started playing football there
all four years. Also ran track while I was there. Um,
we played against a lot of great teams. We had
winning seasons all four years, went to bowl games all
(05:44):
four years. Beat Missouri. UM our final bowl game, which
is my senior year. UM, and that's when Blaine Gabbert
played there as quarterback, and we we roasted Missouri. I
mean we it was forty be forty something to like
like they scored less than ten points, Like we killed them.
So UM. And that's with our little Navy team that
we have a whole bunch of undersized two star athletes.
(06:07):
That's that's what I got. I got a couple of
a couple of three stars here and then it was
once in a blue moon, y'all catch a three star?
But how was that? How was that? Bolance man? Because
you know, I try to tell people all the time,
like when I was when I was in school, you
had obviously your classes, football, um, any kind of study
hall workouts when it work out? How was that man?
(06:28):
Because you also had to you had duties, right, I
mean outside of football, you had tracked what what was
what was that schedule like because that had to been grueling.
That had been crazy. Yeah, it was grueling. I mean
you know every morning you're up at you know five something,
six something. Um, you still have your military site type
stuff that you have to do. You still have, you know,
morning formation, you still have you you're wearing uniform every
(06:49):
single day. Um. At the Naval Academy, you're not allowed
to leave campus throughout the week. So Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Um,
you were stuck on campus. There's no going out, going
and partying, going to Georgetown wherever during the week, none
of that stuff. Um, you gotta stay on campus. Uh.
We have other formations throughout the rest of the day. Uh,
we have other things you have to do as far
(07:09):
as just leadership stuff within your squads that you have
at the academy. All this stuff you gotta do outside
of your regular classes. Then when you get to your classes,
the type of classes were taken. Um, you know, we're
we're everybody no matter what major you are, whether it's
English history or whatever, everyone has to take Calculus one
Calculus two, Calculus three, thermodynamics, electrical engineering one electrical engineering
(07:30):
to physics one physics too, chemistry one chemistry to um. Uh,
everyone has to take all those classes of just name,
no matter what your major are. So um, it's a
it's a technical school for a reason where everyone gets
a technical type degree. Um. But uh, it's it was tough.
It's not easy. And then throw up football on there,
which is like a full time job itself. I can't
(07:52):
I can't even imagine because I was looking at like
our our study hall hours and classes and win a
workout and you know, depending on what kind of study
halls you had at just like Jesus Man, Like, college
to me was not fun. Everybody said they had so
much fun in college. I mean I love going to
University of Maryland because the campus was was bar none.
I mean it was a beautiful campus, but my memories
(08:14):
of college was not fun. Like jeez, Christ, I want
to get to the league. I'm trying to get to
the pros. And that's why you After my third year, man,
I checked the duce. I was, yeah, yeah, I know
it is. It's tough, but it wasn't easy at all.
A lot of people will say, you know, especially going
to the naval cabin, it's like a great place to
be from not always at because you know, yeah, it's
(08:35):
a college kid. You know you're looking at all your
friends having fun, party and all these other places. Especially
because you know, right when I was getting into college,
that's when Facebook was becoming a thing, and it was
the first time you got to really see people's lives
everywhere they were, um and and you got and all
these friends posting all these pictures of them doing all
this stuff. I'm like, man, they look like they're having
a great time, but I'm over here studying, super hard,
(08:58):
working super hard in football, study is super hard, just
never having time for anything. Um So it's tough. But
you know, if you want to go do something big
like play college football on national TV, you know you
gotta you gotta make those sacrifices. At Chief it, we're
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(09:44):
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So that so that was like our connection, right. So
I want to explain to people how how we met.
We met um at one of my Lights out of
events downtown in Los Angeles. Uh, through a mutual friend
of ours j Yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, with Jay Mendoza.
(11:30):
He was a kind of a social media star and
so I'm having this event um downtown and he says,
this is my boy, Jesse Wolgi. You know we played
football at Navy, and I think, okay, cool. So you
got that that connection there, and he was telling me
about a couple of things. But the last thing he
did was kind of I was like, remember I had
(11:51):
it with reporters. It was all these people I was
talking to and I remember him saying that he also
it's in NASCAR, and I was like, hold on, hold on,
hold one time out he blacked though. That was the
first thing that went in my head. I was like, Oh,
he's black dude the NASCAR, And I was like, the
only person I knew of at the time was Bubba Yeah,
(12:12):
but I didn't. I didn't know of any other black
people in Nascar. I just didn't. So out of all
these things that was going on at the event, I
like stopped in my tracks and with a cold on
the time out and said, he's just say Nascar, And
then we started, you know, he introduced it and we
started talking. You know, we talked a little bit about football,
but I had no idea about some of the other
(12:34):
circuits that was in NASCAR. Which is the which is
the which is the can in So how how how
did that start? You left so you left school, um,
and you had your duties and things like that, But
how did NASCAR come about? Because it was just so
it caught me so off guard when we started first
talking about it, I was like, wow, man, this is crazy. Yeah, so,
(12:57):
you know, yeah, right when I graduated from the Naval Academy,
came a surface warfare officer, So you know, I was
basically going off to the fleet. I was on ships.
Uh my first four years, I was on two different ships,
went on two different deployments. Uh. After and but during
that time, like when I was back home in San
Diego at that time, um, you know, I would come
back to San Diego and I had two cars that
(13:18):
were you know, performance sports cars, and I would take
them to um drag strips and road course tracks in
southern California. Had a lot of fun doing that. And
after a few years of that, I was like, man,
you know, every time I go to the track, you
know I do pretty well. You know, why not try
to take this to the highest level? Like why not
try to become a pro driver something like that. I'd
be a really cool goal to achieve. So I I
(13:38):
wrote it on my whiteboard, UM as a goal, um,
become a professional race car driver. That was around two
thousand four team and uh. From now, I was like, Okay,
how do I make this happen? And I did a
lot of research, did a lot of networking, and put
a lot of pieces together to even get to a
point where I could find my way into a racing series.
The first racing series was um a Late Modele Racing
(14:00):
series at Irwindale's Speedway. So I was getting into circle
track racing. Yeah, short track yeah yeah. So um I
got there and I was like, hey, you know, maybe
this is where I belong, Maybe this is where I
can start. You know, there aren't black people really racing,
and NASCAR is not a lot. Um. There was Bubba
Wallace at that time, and really that was all I
knew who were in the National Series. So I was like,
(14:22):
I need to get to the National Series level and
race there too. So I began working my way up
the ranks and started in late models. From late Models,
moved onto the NASCAR K and N Series, which is
now the ARCA West Series. Um but uh yeah, started
started running in there, and then a year into that,
that's when when we had linked up. I remember telling you,
I'm like I was just thinking at the time because
I was always about networking and trying to just figure
(14:44):
out you know, odd ball ways and continue to uh
you know, make this journey you know bigger. Um. So
then when I when I linked up with you, I
was like, man, I was like, what if we figured
out a way to kind of make you part of
everything that we were doing. You know, at that time,
the team I was running with, we were very um
we had a very open, tight environment where we could
just just do just do whatever we could, like whatever
odd bought things that most people wouldn't think of doing.
(15:05):
I was like, why don't we make you you know,
former NFL star all that stuff? Once you make you
like a team owner basically like a car owner in
the series, I was like, who's doing that? No one
else is doing that, Let's do it ourselves. And um,
you know then that's basically where the relationship pretty much began.
And it was cool doing that in twenty seventeen, I
guess was the season we did it Ineen and um man,
(15:27):
uh fun times. A lot of a lot of ups
and downs on the races, but we did what we
could what we had and um, you know you had
a lot of great contacts too and helped us with
the sponsor that we had that year, and um, you
know it always well so, um it was cool, cool
way of doing things. No, it was you know, it
was different. I was just thinking outside the box and
just my involvement too. What happened. How I got in
(15:49):
a NASCAR was in two thousand and eight when I
was playing with the charges, the Richard Petty group. They
invited me out for the Richard Petty Experience and they
came out and made me the Grand Marshal of the
Fontana races Um. And I came out and at that
time that from PG County and Watchington, DC area, we
wasn't watching NASCAR. I mean, if you did watch the
NASCAR it was on TV, it wasn't that exciting. You
(16:11):
didn't really understand what was going on. Just looked like
a bunch of cards racing fast in the circle. You
didn't know. And you know, like in the hood, like
back where I'm from, you knew about the Dale Earnhards
and like you know, the bigger drivers, but you didn't know.
You didn't know about the actual sports. So me being
invited out for to be the Grand Marshal in two
thousand and eight, they came and they told me everything
(16:32):
I was gonna do. Mind you, I didn't know how
big it was. I think it might have been thirty
to fifty thousand people that day at the track in
two thousand and eight. It was it was huge. I
had no idea Nascar. I think at that time it
was like probably it might have been eight. It was.
It was massive, and they told me what I was
gonna do. I got there to the track and they said, hey,
(16:53):
we're gonna give you this flag. You're gonna walk up
on the ladder. We're gonna announce you, and you're gonna
start to waive it, but don't drop the flag. And
I'm looking at them like, what are you talking about.
It's you know, it's a damn flag. You know, I mean,
who can't swing a flag around and whatnot? Right. So
I got there and I'm about to walk up the
ladder and I looked back and they told me, they said, look,
(17:14):
don't drop the flag. We're gonna announce your name. So
the announced my name, crowd goes crazy. They allowed and
then I look back and I said, I got this.
What are you talking about? It's a damn flag, right.
So I walk out there and almost in the middle
of the track, and I got the green flag in
my hand and they start the cars up, and you know,
(17:35):
you're that close in the track and your adrenaline starts
to go and you're like, holy shit, right, and just
oh my god, they're started, so your adrenaline is going.
And my hands started to get wet, start to get wet.
So I'm like, I'm like, please, I said, hold on.
I look back again, and I'm looking and I just
remember them telling me don't drop the flag, and I
(17:55):
go and I started to wave it. My hands are
my hands are soaking well. Man. So I'm out there.
I'm nervous as hell now, so I'm saying, please do
not drop this flag. Now they start the cars up,
and that I never forget that the energy that goes
through you, like your body being that close to the track.
And that's why I tell people to get if you
(18:16):
are in a NASCAR you ever thinking about it, get
to the tracks because it's totally different when you get there.
So I'm standing in the middle of the track and
they started engine up. They started to take their you know,
the warm up laps around, you know, cleaning the tires
off and doing all the stuff they're doing. And they said, okay,
go and I started to wave the flag and not
now I hear and I'm thinking I'm gonna drop the
(18:37):
band flag. I said, please don't do that. There's gonna
be the most embarrassing ship that ever happened me before
in my life. And so anyway, but what that day
is why I got into NASCAR, because going to the tracks,
to me was it was a game change. It was
way different than watching on TV. I got a chance
of sitt in the pitch for the first time. You
(18:58):
got you got, and I'm adrenaline junk, you man. I
like energy, and I like you know stuff, And it's
there's no better adrenaline that you have being that closer
to track right when your thirty or sixty seconds however
long it takes, or fifteen seconds, how long it takes
for them to coming to pitt and leave out, that
is a total a whole different adrenaline rush. So that
was that was my get into NASCAR type of type
(19:21):
of deal. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I know.
It's the rush is crazy. I mean, yeah, we're people
who haven't been to the track before. Once you get there, um,
you know, being able to just yeah, feel like the engines,
the sounds, just the energy around and there's so much
going on even when they come in for the pit stops.
I mean, I I tell people like, that's one of
the coolest parts to me is just coming into the
pit stops having these guys jump over the wall in
(19:41):
front of these cars that are coming in at fifty
sixty miles per hour into a box. Basically imagine driving
off of a highway, you know, like whatever highway speeds
you are into your garage and stopping just in time
without hitting anything. And by the way, five people are
jumping out in front of your car to uh to
to take off your tires and and place them with
the other ones and all that stuff. So yeah, it's uh,
it's pretty crazy. Adoption of teams from foster care is
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the AD Council. Hi everybody, I'm Rachel Banetta and I
have my very own podcast called Bench with Banetta. You're
kidding me. I'm just here so I won't get fine.
(21:12):
You may know me from Game Debut or Game Day
Morning on NFL Network, basically any shows with the word
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your podcasts. So yeah, So in two thousand and eight,
I went to From two thousand and eight to the
time that we kind of linked up in two thousand seventeen,
I've probably been to you know, ten or fifteen tracks
(22:20):
or something like that. I will go to at least
three or four tracks a year. And when we finally
linked up, and and and my whole thing and why
we kind of doing what we were doing is to
get more acknowledgement in the sport, you know, with minorities
and blacks. Like, to me, man, that was that was
huge because when I want to the track, you didn't
(22:40):
see it. You didn't you know, you didn't see car owners,
you didn't see team owners, you didn't see really any
black people or minnorities at the track. And I said, damn,
you know, people are kind of missing out a little bit.
And like, you know, maybe to me, maybe it was
And I was trying to figure out why. I was like,
maybe it's the not having access to be able to
go to a track. I mean, growing up where I
(23:01):
grew up, it was no attract nowhere near. I think
the closest track might have been doverver Over Yeah, yeah,
you know the Marston Mouth so um, but that was
still what a couple of hours away from from where
I was, so we didn't we couldn't afford going there.
We couldn't get to the track. So NASCAR was never
really an interest going up. But I was like, you
(23:21):
know what, maybe if we you know what, we don't
want to say, we me and you and we link
up and and and kind of bring more eyeballs to
the sport, uh and do something that hasn't been done here. Uh,
maybe it might be different. Maybe you might have more
people of color. That's going to be interesting in getting
to the tracks, because it needs to it needs to happen. Yeah. Yeah,
was definitely yeah exactly, yeah, and you know it was cool,
(23:43):
especially like you know, I think I can't remember which
year that you did the thing where you brought all
the kids to it was a tent seventeen or eighteen, um. Yeah,
So like things like that. I mean that was like
really cool and something, um I feel like was needed.
Like I feel like right now with like again I
saw all the time. You know, what does Nascarny to
do to continue to build diversity. I'm like, well, obviously,
(24:04):
you know on the driver's side, um, crew side, and
you know, um all that stuff. Um, you know, there's
a pipeline and stuff that they're working on. You know,
they got the D for D program, all these other
little things that they're doing to help build that side.
But as far as the fan base, you know, doing
things like you did in eighteen, just bringing a group
of kids and and I know you brought a lot,
but um, you didn't even have to be that much
as time. Maybe it's just twenty kids or something like
(24:24):
that from you know, different inner city areas near the
tracks and just bring them and have an exposure because
like you said, getting them to the track is what's
going to create that fan And then all of a
sudd they're gonna tell their friend, They're gonna tell their friend,
they're gonna tell their parents. Makes you know, hopefully the
next year of the family makes a trip to come
out there, because the kid all years like I want
to go back. I want to go back. So, um,
you know, doing things like that I think is huge
(24:45):
and and what the sport really needs to continue to
build diversity at the youth level. Yeah. So one thing
what Jesse's talking about is, uh, two thousand and eighteen,
I got the opportunity to bring um about sixty kids
from the Inn, the city UH two, the Track and
Delaware to the Monster Mile. And you know, the whole
cause behind that from the start to me was is
(25:07):
just get them there right, let them see, let them
be there because there's so many different opportunities in NASCAR,
and it's not necessarily always being a driver, Like every
one of those kids are not going to be a driver.
You're not gonna have an opportunity to be a driver.
But there's so many different jobs and opportunities working at
this track. Maybe you can be a track president or
whatever that turns out to be. That opportunities there. It's
(25:29):
a lot of opportunity in nascars. And what's crazy about
that is, um, some of those kids from that day
in two thousand and eighteen, they still reach out here
now that send me direct message on on Instagram, I
get letters, you know, for at least about fifteen kids.
And for me, if five of those if five of
those kids that day, if they get a chance to
go in one day working the NASCAR circuit wherever that
(25:53):
might be, I'm like, that's to me my job to win.
It's a win, big Tom. And what what do you
what do you see? You know because we obviously being
there and it's certain diversity programs is set up, there's
certain things that is going on a NASCAR, but I
just and NASCAR is totally receptive and they open to
two open the doors to more black people minorities. Um,
(26:16):
but some just to me it's like that it's not enough,
like it it's not enough that that that bridge isn't
built and how people get what do you what do
you see as missing right now that whit needs to happen? Yeah, um,
I would say missing wise Um, like like you said,
like with what you did, like that particular type of program,
I think it's huge. I feel like that should be
happening at every single track um around the country. Um.
(26:40):
Not just you know that one time at Dover. You
know it's great and all for that time, but we
should be doing that every because we do it for
the military, and we don't bring fifty sixty people to
every track, but um, each track for the most part
that they go to, they have a program where they
do troops to the track where they have you know,
usually anywhere between you know, ten to twenty people that
they bring U Mill Ferry service members who are from
(27:01):
the basis nearby. And it's a cool program because it
provides that, um, that experience of these guys who sometimes
have never been to a tract before, providing that same
opportunity I think to minorities who who who just don't
have the opportunity to come to the track because of
maybe lack of money or lack of whatever, or just
you know, parents are working super hard. I mean, you know,
I mean you know, I mean you go to a
lot of these families and it might just only be
(27:22):
a mother who's taking care of the whole household and
she's working every single day, hours and hours and hours.
I mean she just doesn't have time, you know. Or
maybe it's a single dad who's just working hard to
support the family. UM, they just don't have the time
to take their their kids to you know, things like
NASCAR or even any other sports. UM, So if if
if NASCAR could kind of be that bridge to help
(27:42):
bring these people in, um, to to give them that
opportunity they just don't have, that would be huge. UM.
You know. As far as uh, past the ark level,
there really isn't UM, I would say, like another driver
diversity type program that's um really I guess, um continuing
to push people into like uh, you know, Truck's Affinity
(28:02):
and Cup. You know, right now it just really ends
at the ARCA level. UM. Not that you know, there
are people who do go from defer D too, you know,
and eventually into the National Series and stuff. You have
Daniel Suarez, I believe Kyle Larson was part of the
group before Bubba Wallace obviously, UM. And then on the
crew side, there's been people who've done the Deeper D
program who've moved on to be on Cruise like Brianna Um,
(28:24):
Brianna Daniels, she's uh, she's doing really well, and Cup awesome,
she's doing really really good, really cool, cool person. So UM,
you know, but as far as the driver's side, UM,
I feel like there's not really, I guess a drive
for diversity program in the National Series. UM. Now, it's
tough because it just costs money. At the end of
the day, no matter what we all do. Tires aren't free. Um, vehicles,
(28:48):
all this stuff isn't free just cause money. So you know,
and then the companies that make all this stuff they
gotta feed their families too. So um, there's a so
just breaking just break it down to people, what what
what is the average costs? So they so they know,
let's started a decent team that's on the Cup Series.
What does it cost to race per decent team? As
(29:08):
what you say, what you mean by decent um, I
mean that's that's called that's called a mid tiers. Okay,
we can break it into three tiers. Like let's say
I just say a lower budget team, mid budget team,
and high budet team. The lower budget teams in the
Cup Series, I would say each race, you know, depending
on what they're doing and how they're making their money work,
they could be spending anywhere from fifty two hundred fifty
(29:30):
thousand dollars per race um uh. And then mid budget
teams they're probably in that two hundred two four hundred
grand type uh per race budget. And the higher budget
teams I've heard of costs up to eight hundred thousand
per race. UM, and the hurdy give you more actually,
(29:50):
UM so uh it's could it could be really high
and it's pricey and UM yeah, I mean you gotta
think about it like on you know right now, COVID
time is kind of um really UM changed a lot
of different things. But prior to COVID, I mean, you know,
for a full lot men of tires in the Cup
Series for a full weekend, I believe it's like forty
grand or something depending on what track with like forty
grand or forty five something like that. Um. I mean
(30:12):
that's a lot that's just on tires for the weekend,
you know. I mean, and that's not including um, all
the travel. I mean, think of all the haulers the
race cars, getting two of them ready for that weekend
because you gotta have the backup car. UM, all the
people that you're bringing, and you've got all these people
that gotta come to attract to work on these cars.
All the hotels, the flights, UM, the food, all their
(30:33):
all all their cruger that they're wearing, their equipment, the
pit boxes. I mean those things cost as much as
the house. You know, So all this stuff that's going
on it's just that's why it costs so much money
to race. And I'm funny, thing is as much as
the cost to race you know in NASCAR here, it's
nothing compared to what Formula one is around the world,
and Formula one there's their budgets are like ten times
(30:55):
the amount. Oh it's it's ridiculous. And that's that's my
reason for being in m m A. Now it's it's pricey,
but it's fun and and you know, there there are
good to have money. I don't think it's being thrown away.
You mean, as much as you know, I just named
listed a lot of kind of what things cost, it's
not being thrown away. A lot of good is being
done um and and companies who are sponsoring are seeing
(31:16):
great marketing benefits out of it. So there's the reason
why I cost him. I mean, you can you can
go spend a ton of money to have a thirty
second commercial on whatever, you know, TV channel, or you
can spend you know that kind of money on you know,
sponsoring a car in a race and having a you know,
three four hour rolling commercial for the race. So you know,
it just depends on you know, what you want to do.
(31:36):
Once you're uh what your marketing initiatives are? The NFL
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I would surprised me would would kind of be in
(32:41):
a NASCAR uh for the time that I was. It's
not just the lack of like diversity part of it
and people not being in it, but also these these
companies these black owned companies, these big black owned companies
like the like you just talked about the opportunities in
NASCAR and them not being in it. I'm like, man,
do you understand, like if you have a for example,
if you had a product you were trying to sell,
(33:03):
if you're trying to have a product placement or whatever
it is. There's grocery stores, there's convenience stores, there's all
these you know, different companies there's in NASCAR, and there's
one or two pits away from you. There one or
two sweets away from you. I can't tell you how
many meetings I've had, you know, when the raid, before
the racing started. Obviously I'll be there for the drivers
(33:24):
and the team owner meetings and things like that, but
right after that, it's meeting after meeting for me. And
you know, I was just always surprised that there wasn't
more big companies, black owned companies that got into a
NASCAR because of the opportunity there is just on another level, Yeah, yeah,
I feel like there's a lot of black owned companies
(33:45):
that probably could get involved. Um, you know, and and
and you know, we're still obviously working on diversity side
of you know, having more diverse drivers and things like that.
So maybe they weren't getting involved before because they didn't
see that diversity. UM. Right now, I mean, we obviously
are trying to change. It is still not where it
needs to be yet. UM. You know right now in
the National Series, you got me, you have Bubba Wallace. Uh.
(34:05):
You know, Kyle Larson is gonna be really reinstated, UM
here at the beginning of next year. UM. And then
uh Daniel Suarez, uh, you know, Hispanic driver. UM. And
then you know there's females coming up to by the way,
So you know when I say minorities, I don't just
talk about color. It's about females too. So females are
are coming up with the ranks too. So UM, a
(34:27):
lot of different uh diversity initiatives are happening. We still
need more, you know, we need we need a lot
more color, a lot of different variants and genders, UM,
all that stuff just to continue to to to represent
what America is. You know, America isn't just one race.
America is a lot of races. So, UM, let's represent
what the country looks like in our sport. And UM,
you know, obviously give opportunities to people who who can
(34:49):
excel and being great ambassadors of the sport, and um,
you know that's gonna help out. But yeah, I feel like, uh,
you know black owned businesses, Um, you know time is
now jump in you know, support. Um everyone's talking about
wanting to support diversity initiatives and things like that, We'll
want to support the NASCAR. I mean, NASCAR is making
a huge push, I think, bigger than any other sport
out there. And they've taken hard stands um more than
(35:13):
any other sport out there, and earlier than any of
the sports. A lot of other sports are taking a
while to make decisions on Okay, what are we gonna
do here, We're gonna do that. NASCAR just stood up
and was like, look, we're gonna band the Confederate flag.
We're gonna do this. We're gonna do that and and
and they did it like that. Was it like there
always no red tape. It was just we're gonna do it.
Um and and and I love that NASCAR is gonna
take the nice the good stands that they've taken to
(35:34):
to help make it more inclusive. And I'm sure that
wasn't easy for them either to make those decisions. I mean,
you know, the the years that we were working together,
and I was flying to short tracks, the big tracks
wherever it was. You know what it was, Iowa Speedwhale.
It was the track in Monroe, and you know, I'll
(35:55):
never forget, you know, coming there and now fly into
town wherever you're shi kind of meet you there and
going to get my rental card and drive into the
track and going through some of those neighborhoods depending on
where the track was when you It was one time
and I don't know if I never told you or not,
but uh, it was one time. I think I was
(36:16):
one of the tracks. I can't remember what track it was.
I landed there and I was using ways to get
to the track, and it just took me through some
weird neighborhoods and I got it. I said, hold, it
was Confederate flags everywhere. It was everywhere, and I was like,
I was like, I gotta go back on I gotta
(36:40):
go back on the Google map. I kind of gotta
stay on the main road. Crazy. Uh, but you know
I was. I was proud and I was happy the
way that you know, when the whole bubble, all this
thing happened, and how NASCAR came out and it wasn't
like an indecisive thing. It was like, this is what
we're gonna do, and whoever don't like it, deal with it.
And how everybody came together because that was a big step, um,
(37:04):
especially in his a sport like Nascar and kind of
from the outside looking in, and how some people may
perceive the sport and a fan base. So when they
took that stands, I was like, right on, that was
that was dope. I mean, yeah, it was. It was great.
You know, um with the Confederate flag and even the military.
It's funny a lot of people got upset with it,
but even the military, the thing that everyone supports. We
(37:26):
also banned that flag too. I mean we we we
really did a long time ago, but no one really
pushed it enough. Um, And now it was like official, like, hey,
that flight does not belong anywhere on any base because
you know, yeah, it's part of history, but it's not
a nation like the the Confederate flag represents, and in
the nation that no longer exists. The US beat them
in the war. It's done. Um, We the United States
(37:46):
of America owns all this. Now we're not split anymore.
So let's let's get rid of the flag with keeping
in the history books and that's it. You know, speaking
of history books, your your Dallas cowboy, yourself there. They're
making a lot of history. They're they're going through. It's tough.
I I you know, obviously Dak Presscott is hurt right
(38:07):
now and and hopefully gets better soon. Um and can
you know come back stronger? Um it really there's injuries.
It sucks. I mean that that's not a great place
to break anything. Um but uh um, you know, besides
that though, but prior to that, yeah, I don't know
what was going on. I felt like we had a
strong team again coming in the year. We have all
talent in the world. I mean, the offense was producing numbers.
I mean, if you look at the number, I mean,
(38:28):
Dak was out there slinging four hundred plus yards a game. Um,
you know, touchdowns, being scored, all this stuff is happening.
I just I don't know what the defense was really doing.
And we're just lating up too many points. We're making
too many mistakes. Um, I don't I don't don't know. Man.
It's the Cowboys every year. It's just like they gave
you a lot of hope. That's the thing like this.
There's some teams out there who just gave you zero
(38:48):
hope to even start the year. The Cowboys give you
a ton of hope, a le so you leusally start
on the high before you start coming down. You don't
just start down on paper on paper. Everybody hyped up
all year, and they trick you, that's what they do.
And then you know, for being from Maryland, either a
red Skins or a Cowboys family back if your red
(39:09):
skin as a cow but that was it. It was
in one of the two, and so I got to
hear it either way. And I'm looking man, and the
first thing come to my mind is they kept Jason
Garrett two years too long, and they brought the wrong
coach and Mike McCarthy to hand over the keys to
a Ferrari that was kind of like damaged already. You know,
offense line is beat up, and and you know Jeeke
(39:30):
had with three fumbals the other day and they're just
not playing well across the board. And on top of that,
you know you got players in the locker room to
speaking to the media behind closed doors. Now I don't
know if you've seen that. But they came out and
said how unprepared the coaches are. And this is coming
from the players, and you can you can tell by
watching the game when you play ball, like you know,
(39:51):
when you're starting to lose the locker room, that's exactly
what guys do, like start talking to the media, start
going to do stuff behind your back, and it's just
it's just symbolize a very bad team. Yeah, and that's
what they are right now. They're a bad team. So
it's just it's it's fun from me because I get
a chance to talk track to some of my family
who are Cowboys fans still. Um, but yeah, you know,
(40:15):
how does how does that work? Man in the locker room?
And or just even with NASCAR, right, Um, how does
that happen? Because people always thinking of the drivers. They
don't understand like how much of a team NASCAR is
like everybody around If you don't somebody is not spotting
the race correctly and and and I spotted a race before,
(40:36):
which is kind of crazy. You know, Yeah, tell people
with spotting the race if they don't already. Yeah, for
it to be a spotter in the race, you basically
when the drivers on the track. You only have a
certain field division you can only see you know, like
this much. You can't really see anything behind. It's not
like in a regular car where you can look behind
you and all that stuff. You can't do all that
(40:57):
because you're just stuck in the seat and the full
containment that you just can't see. So, um, you need
somebody who's on the radio with you, um, looking around
you and behind you to let you know that, hey,
someone's right behind you there on your right rear, left
rear you name it. So um uh. That person is
called the spotter and they're sitting high up in the
stands where they can kind of, you know, give you
that information. And yeah, you're spotted for. I think it's
(41:18):
a Colorado or something like that. Um. It's funny, but yeah, yeah,
and I was. I was nervous as hell too. Yeah. Yeah,
you know you just spirted you you the eyes and
ears for for the driver who can't see in certain
blind spot. So you know, I just kind of going
out and do it. But no, But back to my point,
(41:38):
I was saying that, you know, people understand how much
of a team NASCAR is, and you have sometimes the
same type of thing happening where you know, stuff gets
out of people talking behind closed doors or what's going
on with the team Like that is not accepted either.
I mean that's that's really frowned upon. Yeah, I mean
that can happen. Um. You know with NASCAR, a lot
of stuff is media. Um you do a lot of
(41:58):
stuff with the media. Um. Period. And you know you
can you can tell when certain teams are having issues
throughout the year. Um, you know, maybe uh driver isn't
getting them out of you know results that they want.
What are wins or whatever it is. Um. Even you
know they might say something to me like hey, you
know it's they could blame it on themselves. They could
blame it on the team, pit, crew, crew chief, whatever. Um.
(42:22):
You know, people throw blame all over the place. Um.
You know, I think the day it's a team sport. Um,
it doesn't take just one person to go win a race.
It doesn't just take two. It takes like the whole
entire team. The crew chief could be phenomenal, the driver
could be phenomenal. But if the crew screws up there
pickers gives up all of a sudden, you know, you
can't win the race. The pickrew could be phenomenal driver.
It could be not having a great day and crew
(42:43):
chief make the best calls and then you know, all
of a sudden, you don't win. So you know a
lot of stuff can happen. So um yeah, I think
everyone being on the same page, everyone always communicating, if
that's what keeps the team together, that's what allows people
to progress, because you're not gonna win every single race,
but as well, but but you can't make progress and
you can't be doing the right things to set yourself
eventually up for a win or or a string of
(43:04):
wins eventually. So um, it's tough. That Star is very
different than any of the sport ever. Really, sport is
just one one group versus the other, and just one
one of them is gonna win. And I start, you
got forty cars out there, so you compete against forty
different people to try to forty different people to try
to get one win. It's it's insane, man. So so
tell what what's next? I've say, you've got some stuff
(43:26):
going on with the Exfanity series now right yeah, um yeah, yeah,
so yeah, so what's so what's I'll do now? And
I wanted I mean, you're moving right now. I mean
that from the from the plan we first started talking
and starting on the Cannons series, which is now the
ARCA ARCA West, UM, but in now moving up to
what what you know when you went to the truck
(43:47):
series and now yeah so yeah, so um, you know,
went from you can and stuff, UM, and then ran
a little bit of ARCA, UM, moved up to trucks.
Ran trucks really since the end of UM and then uh,
I've still run trucks this year. I've been running trucks
this year, but I started running Axfinity stuff as well,
and I will finish off the rest of this year
(44:07):
running Exfinity. UM. This weekend we're running racing at Texas
Motor Speedway, so I'll be racing there. I'm actually flying
out today to go to Texas and uh and then
I'll be racing also at Phoenix International Raceway. So um
yeah yeah Phoenix is awesome. UM. You know, being able
to have the opportunity to racing Exfunity Series has been
you know, something I've been looking forward to for a while. Uh.
(44:30):
And uh, you know my end goal is eventually racing
the Cup Series. UM. You know, just it takes time.
Takes a lot of money, a lot of networking, a
lot of partnerships, a lot of that stuff to get there.
But um, working on getting there and eventually we'll get there,
just is it takes time. So yeah, working on that
and then um, you know, working on a lot of
other big things too that's in the works for you know,
next year hopefully god willing. UM you know, really trying
(44:52):
to boost up the e sports component of UM racing
and as farm you know in and we're in the
middle of putting together e sports tournament UM called Yeah,
so it's called Eracing Association and it's gonna be right now.
Like there's there's other you know, like eye racing type
UM tournaments that people are putting on eye racing that
will uh you know, they give away money and stuff.
(45:14):
The tournaments that we're gonna be putting on on eye
Racing will be giving away big money. We're looking at
giving like ten tho dollars for the prize pool, um
for the tournament. So um, there's not a lot of
tournaments in the past we have done that kind of money.
Um there's some, but not a lot, and we want
to be that one to do it and create a
series of events where people can go compete when money
and this December hopefully someone's gonna have a lot of
(45:37):
Christmas money. So so basically what you're saying is when
you get up to the Cup Series, I gotta come
back on board because we need to get put together
some money. If you've got some stuff you can bring over,
let me know, let us know. Yeah, No, it's uh,
you know, it's just it takes time and money. I mean,
it's just you know, like I mentioned earlier, you know,
(45:57):
nothing's free. You know, the tires aren't free. You know,
the equipment isn't free. The times it's just cost playing.
There's no way around it. So putting together the right
partnerships are what it takes to continue to move forward,
or just having a really big business empire outside of
it and just funding it yourself. Yeah that works too,
all right man, Well, look I appreciate you for coming on.
(46:19):
Good luck this weekend. I wish I didn't have to
fly out for business because I damn sure. I love
the Texas Speedway out there. So yeah, are you? Are
you right in Arizona? Right after that we'll be raised
Phoenix is November seven, So we skip one skip one
weekend and there skip one weekend just following week right, Okay,
(46:40):
maybe maybe I'll meet you out there in the Phoenix.
Now I like that that uh that track. Yeah, it's
cool track, especially since they since they've redone it. Oh yeah, yeah,
they they in the enfield. Well, the thing is with
with the way COVID stuff is they're not really letting
anyone on the infield, but um, which kind of sucks
because that's where like all the fun is down there. Now.
I mean, they really revamped the whole place. It's really
really nice. It sucks I can't really use it this year,
(47:01):
but hopefully next year things will be back to normal.
We'll see. Okay, cool man, Well, good luck this weekend,
we'll we'll we'll figure it out. I'll get out there
the more tracks maybe four the years out all right, cool,
Thank you. I appreciate you guys for listening in to
another episode of the Lights Out podcast with me saw Merriman.
One thing about jesse Man, he's one of the most
(47:23):
hardest working guys I know, seriously, and he talked about um,
you know, him being in college playing football, but also
being having his duties being in the military and his
transition into NASCAR, which was crazy. We got a chance
to meet in two thousand seventeen and trying to bring
really programs and more diversity to the sport. We feel
(47:43):
like it was more opportunity that can be done and
more things that can be done in NASCAR, not just
necessarily being a driver, but also UM having you know,
inner city kids being able to go to tracks and
see what NASCAR's about. Um also talked a little bit
about this his terrible Dallas Cowboys and what they're playing
like this year and the things that going on in
(48:03):
the locked room. But always always great talking to Jesse.
Wishing a lot of luck this weekend at the Texas
speed Way and in a few more weeks at the
Phoenix Race tracks down there, which I'll be going. So
thank you guys for listening it to another episode of
Lights Out with me Seawan Merriman, and make sure you
keep tuning in subscribe, rate us do all those great things.
(48:24):
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Boom boom boom, out go the lights. This is Lights
(01:26):
Out with Sean Merriman. What's up, guys, We're back again
on the Lights Off podcast with me Seawan Merriman. We
have a special to guest today, one of my former
drivers in NASCAR. We've taken all the way to NASCAR today,
Jesse and Wouji Uh former football player and went to Navy. Uh.
(01:46):
I always get on him. He was he was okay,
He was okay though he was he was really good, Uh,
defensive back. But just my involvement in NASCAR over the years. Um,
I give a really funny story about how I got
started in NASCAR being invited out two thousand eight by
the Richard Pettis Group and Uh, I was the Grand
Marshal to the Fontana Race. And I came up and
(02:08):
I had no idea about Nascar. Remember I'm from Maryland, Washington,
d C. Area. I got no idea other than watching
NASCAR on TV. It looks like a bunch of fast
cars going to circles. And Uh, I was in for
a treat two thousand eighteen, grand Marshal of the Fontana Races.
And I'll tell you if one of my most nerve
wrecking days because I had no idea there was gonna
be sixty plus thousand people there at the track. I
(02:31):
had no idea that getting up there that close on
the tract and filling those cars and the energy was
gonna make me nervous where I almost dropped the damn flag.
So bringing in Jesse Wilgio, we almost Also, we're gonna
talk to about the Dallas Cowboys, man, that's his favorite team,
and some of the things that coming out of the
locker room and Mike McCarthy uh coming out interview today
(02:52):
saying that guys should be talking to him direct if
their men. So, um, we we jumped from NASCAR to football.
It's gonna be a really good show. Jesse Wilgi, Jesse,
what's going on? Man? Nothing much, you know, just living life.
You know, ain't nothing cooking over here but the chicken
in the pot. But the chicken would be cooking if
the water wasn't hot. You know what. I knew he
(03:14):
was gonna start something, saying saying something right because you look,
because I know you've been up and you've been up
since since five thirty already, and you probably accomplished fifteen
thousand things already. So it's a few things you can
take off that trash, that trash Navy shirts. You want
to go Navy beat Army. And we almost be that
(03:37):
one year two that five. I think you had just graduated,
but we almost be. I was. I was still I
hadn't gotten to Nable kept me yet, I was still
a year away. But we got close. We got close,
and then a corner that we had missed a tackle
with one of your running backs. Next you know, you
know that fourth down or whatever it was converted, and
then we lost the game. I remember that game and
the reason why it is because that was kind of
(03:58):
like the drop off us. It was like wet to Navy.
But you know what teams like Navy was always tough, tough, Yeah,
that was that was always a problem. Like we had
a we had We always had a problem with Temple.
We had a problem you know, Navy, any any one
of the scrappy schools. I mean we used to sometime
(04:18):
go and have problems with Duke when this is before
they actually got good. It was just one of those
scrappy teams that always give it a problem with. Yes,
to tell people a little bit about before we jump
into all all your NASCAR stuff, but um, your football
and playing you know when you know what years did
you go to play football at Navy and how how
did you get there? Yeah, so originally from Dallas, Texas,
(04:40):
and I grew up there. Both my parents came from
Nigeria to the US, so we didn't have you know,
football wasn't something in our family. UM, you know, and
not like my dad or my grandparents or anybody played
football before. It was really uh, me and my two
brothers and my sister. My sister probably could have played football, honestly,
but both of my brothers and us we we all
played football in Dallas said you know, as you know,
(05:00):
high school football in Texas is huge. So UM, I
had a big goal to go off to college and
play college football. So it worked really hard to put
myself in a position to get recruited UM, and finally
by my junior senior year start getting recruited by a
few schools, and UM Naval Academy was the best of
the bunch. So I just looked at it as a
great opportunity to go to a really good school get
a great education. UM played football for a team that
(05:22):
was winning a lot of games, and UM be able
to have a career. UM as an officer and the
Navy after after I graduated. So it was just a
win in all different ways. UM. So once to Naval Academy,
got their two thousand six UM started playing football there
all four years. Also ran track while I was there. Um,
we played against a lot of great teams. We had
winning seasons all four years, went to bowl games all
(05:44):
four years. Beat Missouri. UM our final bowl game, which
is my senior year. UM, and that's when Blaine Gabbert
played there as quarterback, and we we roasted Missouri. I
mean we it was forty be forty something to like
like they scored less than ten points, Like we killed them.
So UM. And that's with our little Navy team that
we have a whole bunch of undersized two star athletes.
(06:07):
That's that's what I got. I got a couple of
a couple of three stars here and then it was
once in a blue moon, y'all catch a three star?
But how was that? How was that? Bolance man? Because
you know, I try to tell people all the time,
like when I was when I was in school, you
had obviously your classes, football, um, any kind of study
hall workouts when it work out? How was that man?
(06:28):
Because you also had to you had duties, right, I
mean outside of football, you had tracked what what was
what was that schedule like because that had to been grueling.
That had been crazy. Yeah, it was grueling. I mean
you know every morning you're up at you know five something,
six something. Um, you still have your military site type
stuff that you have to do. You still have, you know,
morning formation, you still have you you're wearing uniform every
(06:49):
single day. Um. At the Naval Academy, you're not allowed
to leave campus throughout the week. So Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Um,
you were stuck on campus. There's no going out, going
and partying, going to Georgetown wherever during the week, none
of that stuff. Um, you gotta stay on campus. Uh.
We have other formations throughout the rest of the day. Uh,
we have other things you have to do as far
(07:09):
as just leadership stuff within your squads that you have
at the academy. All this stuff you gotta do outside
of your regular classes. Then when you get to your classes,
the type of classes were taken. Um, you know, we're
we're everybody no matter what major you are, whether it's
English history or whatever, everyone has to take Calculus one
Calculus two, Calculus three, thermodynamics, electrical engineering one electrical engineering
(07:30):
to physics one physics too, chemistry one chemistry to um. Uh,
everyone has to take all those classes of just name,
no matter what your major are. So um, it's a
it's a technical school for a reason where everyone gets
a technical type degree. Um. But uh, it's it was tough.
It's not easy. And then throw up football on there,
which is like a full time job itself. I can't
(07:52):
I can't even imagine because I was looking at like
our our study hall hours and classes and win a
workout and you know, depending on what kind of study
halls you had at just like Jesus Man, Like, college
to me was not fun. Everybody said they had so
much fun in college. I mean I love going to
University of Maryland because the campus was was bar none.
I mean it was a beautiful campus, but my memories
(08:14):
of college was not fun. Like jeez, Christ, I want
to get to the league. I'm trying to get to
the pros. And that's why you After my third year, man,
I checked the duce. I was, yeah, yeah, I know
it is. It's tough, but it wasn't easy at all.
A lot of people will say, you know, especially going
to the naval cabin, it's like a great place to
be from not always at because you know, yeah, it's
(08:35):
a college kid. You know you're looking at all your
friends having fun, party and all these other places. Especially
because you know, right when I was getting into college,
that's when Facebook was becoming a thing, and it was
the first time you got to really see people's lives
everywhere they were, um and and you got and all
these friends posting all these pictures of them doing all
this stuff. I'm like, man, they look like they're having
a great time, but I'm over here studying, super hard,
(08:58):
working super hard in football, study is super hard, just
never having time for anything. Um So it's tough. But
you know, if you want to go do something big
like play college football on national TV, you know you
gotta you gotta make those sacrifices. At Chief it, we're
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So that so that was like our connection, right. So
I want to explain to people how how we met.
We met um at one of my Lights out of
events downtown in Los Angeles. Uh, through a mutual friend
of ours j Yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, with Jay Mendoza.
(11:30):
He was a kind of a social media star and
so I'm having this event um downtown and he says,
this is my boy, Jesse Wolgi. You know we played
football at Navy, and I think, okay, cool. So you
got that that connection there, and he was telling me
about a couple of things. But the last thing he
did was kind of I was like, remember I had
(11:51):
it with reporters. It was all these people I was
talking to and I remember him saying that he also
it's in NASCAR, and I was like, hold on, hold on,
hold one time out he blacked though. That was the
first thing that went in my head. I was like, Oh,
he's black dude the NASCAR, And I was like, the
only person I knew of at the time was Bubba Yeah,
(12:12):
but I didn't. I didn't know of any other black
people in Nascar. I just didn't. So out of all
these things that was going on at the event, I
like stopped in my tracks and with a cold on
the time out and said, he's just say Nascar, And
then we started, you know, he introduced it and we
started talking. You know, we talked a little bit about football,
but I had no idea about some of the other
(12:34):
circuits that was in NASCAR. Which is the which is
the which is the can in So how how how
did that start? You left so you left school, um,
and you had your duties and things like that, But
how did NASCAR come about? Because it was just so
it caught me so off guard when we started first
talking about it, I was like, wow, man, this is crazy. Yeah, so,
(12:57):
you know, yeah, right when I graduated from the Naval Academy,
came a surface warfare officer, So you know, I was
basically going off to the fleet. I was on ships.
Uh my first four years, I was on two different ships,
went on two different deployments. Uh. After and but during
that time, like when I was back home in San
Diego at that time, um, you know, I would come
back to San Diego and I had two cars that
(13:18):
were you know, performance sports cars, and I would take
them to um drag strips and road course tracks in
southern California. Had a lot of fun doing that. And
after a few years of that, I was like, man,
you know, every time I go to the track, you
know I do pretty well. You know, why not try
to take this to the highest level? Like why not
try to become a pro driver something like that. I'd
be a really cool goal to achieve. So I I
(13:38):
wrote it on my whiteboard, UM as a goal, um,
become a professional race car driver. That was around two
thousand four team and uh. From now, I was like, Okay,
how do I make this happen? And I did a
lot of research, did a lot of networking, and put
a lot of pieces together to even get to a
point where I could find my way into a racing series.
The first racing series was um a Late Modele Racing
(14:00):
series at Irwindale's Speedway. So I was getting into circle
track racing. Yeah, short track yeah yeah. So um I
got there and I was like, hey, you know, maybe
this is where I belong, Maybe this is where I
can start. You know, there aren't black people really racing,
and NASCAR is not a lot. Um. There was Bubba
Wallace at that time, and really that was all I
knew who were in the National Series. So I was like,
(14:22):
I need to get to the National Series level and
race there too. So I began working my way up
the ranks and started in late models. From late Models,
moved onto the NASCAR K and N Series, which is
now the ARCA West Series. Um but uh yeah, started
started running in there, and then a year into that,
that's when when we had linked up. I remember telling you,
I'm like I was just thinking at the time because
I was always about networking and trying to just figure
(14:44):
out you know, odd ball ways and continue to uh
you know, make this journey you know bigger. Um. So
then when I when I linked up with you, I
was like, man, I was like, what if we figured
out a way to kind of make you part of
everything that we were doing. You know, at that time,
the team I was running with, we were very um
we had a very open, tight environment where we could
just just do just do whatever we could, like whatever
odd bought things that most people wouldn't think of doing.
(15:05):
I was like, why don't we make you you know,
former NFL star all that stuff? Once you make you
like a team owner basically like a car owner in
the series, I was like, who's doing that? No one
else is doing that, Let's do it ourselves. And um,
you know then that's basically where the relationship pretty much began.
And it was cool doing that in twenty seventeen, I
guess was the season we did it Ineen and um man,
(15:27):
uh fun times. A lot of a lot of ups
and downs on the races, but we did what we
could what we had and um, you know you had
a lot of great contacts too and helped us with
the sponsor that we had that year, and um, you
know it always well so, um it was cool, cool
way of doing things. No, it was you know, it
was different. I was just thinking outside the box and
just my involvement too. What happened. How I got in
(15:49):
a NASCAR was in two thousand and eight when I
was playing with the charges, the Richard Petty group. They
invited me out for the Richard Petty Experience and they
came out and made me the Grand Marshal of the
Fontana races Um. And I came out and at that
time that from PG County and Watchington, DC area, we
wasn't watching NASCAR. I mean, if you did watch the
NASCAR it was on TV, it wasn't that exciting. You
(16:11):
didn't really understand what was going on. Just looked like
a bunch of cards racing fast in the circle. You
didn't know. And you know, like in the hood, like
back where I'm from, you knew about the Dale Earnhards
and like you know, the bigger drivers, but you didn't know.
You didn't know about the actual sports. So me being
invited out for to be the Grand Marshal in two
thousand and eight, they came and they told me everything
(16:32):
I was gonna do. Mind you, I didn't know how
big it was. I think it might have been thirty
to fifty thousand people that day at the track in
two thousand and eight. It was it was huge. I
had no idea Nascar. I think at that time it
was like probably it might have been eight. It was.
It was massive, and they told me what I was
gonna do. I got there to the track and they said, hey,
(16:53):
we're gonna give you this flag. You're gonna walk up
on the ladder. We're gonna announce you, and you're gonna
start to waive it, but don't drop the flag. And
I'm looking at them like, what are you talking about.
It's you know, it's a damn flag. You know, I mean,
who can't swing a flag around and whatnot? Right. So
I got there and I'm about to walk up the
ladder and I looked back and they told me, they said, look,
(17:14):
don't drop the flag. We're gonna announce your name. So
the announced my name, crowd goes crazy. They allowed and
then I look back and I said, I got this.
What are you talking about? It's a damn flag, right.
So I walk out there and almost in the middle
of the track, and I got the green flag in
my hand and they start the cars up, and you know,
(17:35):
you're that close in the track and your adrenaline starts
to go and you're like, holy shit, right, and just
oh my god, they're started, so your adrenaline is going.
And my hands started to get wet, start to get wet.
So I'm like, I'm like, please, I said, hold on.
I look back again, and I'm looking and I just
remember them telling me don't drop the flag, and I
(17:55):
go and I started to wave it. My hands are
my hands are soaking well. Man. So I'm out there.
I'm nervous as hell now, so I'm saying, please do
not drop this flag. Now they start the cars up,
and that I never forget that the energy that goes
through you, like your body being that close to the track.
And that's why I tell people to get if you
(18:16):
are in a NASCAR you ever thinking about it, get
to the tracks because it's totally different when you get there.
So I'm standing in the middle of the track and
they started engine up. They started to take their you know,
the warm up laps around, you know, cleaning the tires
off and doing all the stuff they're doing. And they said, okay,
go and I started to wave the flag and not
now I hear and I'm thinking I'm gonna drop the
(18:37):
band flag. I said, please don't do that. There's gonna
be the most embarrassing ship that ever happened me before
in my life. And so anyway, but what that day
is why I got into NASCAR, because going to the tracks,
to me was it was a game change. It was
way different than watching on TV. I got a chance
of sitt in the pitch for the first time. You
(18:58):
got you got, and I'm adrenaline junk, you man. I
like energy, and I like you know stuff, And it's
there's no better adrenaline that you have being that closer
to track right when your thirty or sixty seconds however
long it takes, or fifteen seconds, how long it takes
for them to coming to pitt and leave out, that
is a total a whole different adrenaline rush. So that
was that was my get into NASCAR type of type
(19:21):
of deal. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I know.
It's the rush is crazy. I mean, yeah, we're people
who haven't been to the track before. Once you get there, um,
you know, being able to just yeah, feel like the engines,
the sounds, just the energy around and there's so much
going on even when they come in for the pit stops.
I mean, I I tell people like, that's one of
the coolest parts to me is just coming into the
pit stops having these guys jump over the wall in
(19:41):
front of these cars that are coming in at fifty
sixty miles per hour into a box. Basically imagine driving
off of a highway, you know, like whatever highway speeds
you are into your garage and stopping just in time
without hitting anything. And by the way, five people are
jumping out in front of your car to uh to
to take off your tires and and place them with
the other ones and all that stuff. So yeah, it's uh,
it's pretty crazy. Adoption of teams from foster care is
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(20:27):
the U. S Department of Health, that Human Services Administration
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Brought to you by the United States Fourth Service and
the AD Council. Hi everybody, I'm Rachel Banetta and I
have my very own podcast called Bench with Banetta. You're
kidding me. I'm just here so I won't get fine.
(21:12):
You may know me from Game Debut or Game Day
Morning on NFL Network, basically any shows with the word
game in it. Odds are you'll find me there every week.
I'm gonna be talking about all the things I find
fascinating about the NFL, like breaking down games, questioning Tom Brady,
genetic makeup. It's gonna be great. I'm also doing something
that has never been done before. I'm opening my DM
(21:38):
DM s now open. We want to hear from you
fans of the NFL. And when I woke up this morning,
I was feeling pretty dangerous. Did you commit a misdemeanor
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Tuesday and join me on the Bench. Subscribe now and
listen to the Bench with Bonetta podcast on the I
Heart Radio app, on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get
your podcasts. So yeah, So in two thousand and eight,
I went to From two thousand and eight to the
time that we kind of linked up in two thousand seventeen,
I've probably been to you know, ten or fifteen tracks
(22:20):
or something like that. I will go to at least
three or four tracks a year. And when we finally
linked up, and and and my whole thing and why
we kind of doing what we were doing is to
get more acknowledgement in the sport, you know, with minorities
and blacks. Like, to me, man, that was that was
huge because when I want to the track, you didn't
(22:40):
see it. You didn't you know, you didn't see car owners,
you didn't see team owners, you didn't see really any
black people or minnorities at the track. And I said, damn,
you know, people are kind of missing out a little bit.
And like, you know, maybe to me, maybe it was
And I was trying to figure out why. I was like,
maybe it's the not having access to be able to
go to a track. I mean, growing up where I
(23:01):
grew up, it was no attract nowhere near. I think
the closest track might have been doverver Over Yeah, yeah,
you know the Marston Mouth so um, but that was
still what a couple of hours away from from where
I was, so we didn't we couldn't afford going there.
We couldn't get to the track. So NASCAR was never
really an interest going up. But I was like, you
(23:21):
know what, maybe if we you know what, we don't
want to say, we me and you and we link
up and and and kind of bring more eyeballs to
the sport, uh and do something that hasn't been done here. Uh,
maybe it might be different. Maybe you might have more
people of color. That's going to be interesting in getting
to the tracks, because it needs to it needs to happen. Yeah. Yeah,
was definitely yeah exactly, yeah, and you know it was cool,
(23:43):
especially like you know, I think I can't remember which
year that you did the thing where you brought all
the kids to it was a tent seventeen or eighteen, um. Yeah,
So like things like that. I mean that was like
really cool and something, um I feel like was needed.
Like I feel like right now with like again I
saw all the time. You know, what does Nascarny to
do to continue to build diversity. I'm like, well, obviously,
(24:04):
you know on the driver's side, um, crew side, and
you know, um all that stuff. Um, you know, there's
a pipeline and stuff that they're working on. You know,
they got the D for D program, all these other
little things that they're doing to help build that side.
But as far as the fan base, you know, doing
things like you did in eighteen, just bringing a group
of kids and and I know you brought a lot,
but um, you didn't even have to be that much
as time. Maybe it's just twenty kids or something like
(24:24):
that from you know, different inner city areas near the
tracks and just bring them and have an exposure because
like you said, getting them to the track is what's
going to create that fan And then all of a
sudd they're gonna tell their friend, They're gonna tell their friend,
they're gonna tell their parents. Makes you know, hopefully the
next year of the family makes a trip to come
out there, because the kid all years like I want
to go back. I want to go back. So, um,
you know, doing things like that I think is huge
(24:45):
and and what the sport really needs to continue to
build diversity at the youth level. Yeah. So one thing
what Jesse's talking about is, uh, two thousand and eighteen,
I got the opportunity to bring um about sixty kids
from the Inn, the city UH two, the Track and
Delaware to the Monster Mile. And you know, the whole
cause behind that from the start to me was is
(25:07):
just get them there right, let them see, let them
be there because there's so many different opportunities in NASCAR,
and it's not necessarily always being a driver, Like every
one of those kids are not going to be a driver.
You're not gonna have an opportunity to be a driver.
But there's so many different jobs and opportunities working at
this track. Maybe you can be a track president or
whatever that turns out to be. That opportunities there. It's
(25:29):
a lot of opportunity in nascars. And what's crazy about
that is, um, some of those kids from that day
in two thousand and eighteen, they still reach out here
now that send me direct message on on Instagram, I
get letters, you know, for at least about fifteen kids.
And for me, if five of those if five of
those kids that day, if they get a chance to
go in one day working the NASCAR circuit wherever that
(25:53):
might be, I'm like, that's to me my job to win.
It's a win, big Tom. And what what do you
what do you see? You know because we obviously being
there and it's certain diversity programs is set up, there's
certain things that is going on a NASCAR, but I
just and NASCAR is totally receptive and they open to
two open the doors to more black people minorities. Um,
(26:16):
but some just to me it's like that it's not enough,
like it it's not enough that that that bridge isn't
built and how people get what do you what do
you see as missing right now that whit needs to happen? Yeah, um,
I would say missing wise Um, like like you said,
like with what you did, like that particular type of program,
I think it's huge. I feel like that should be
happening at every single track um around the country. Um.
(26:40):
Not just you know that one time at Dover. You
know it's great and all for that time, but we
should be doing that every because we do it for
the military, and we don't bring fifty sixty people to
every track, but um, each track for the most part
that they go to, they have a program where they
do troops to the track where they have you know,
usually anywhere between you know, ten to twenty people that
they bring U Mill Ferry service members who are from
(27:01):
the basis nearby. And it's a cool program because it
provides that, um, that experience of these guys who sometimes
have never been to a tract before, providing that same
opportunity I think to minorities who who who just don't
have the opportunity to come to the track because of
maybe lack of money or lack of whatever, or just
you know, parents are working super hard. I mean, you know,
I mean you know, I mean you go to a
lot of these families and it might just only be
(27:22):
a mother who's taking care of the whole household and
she's working every single day, hours and hours and hours.
I mean she just doesn't have time, you know. Or
maybe it's a single dad who's just working hard to
support the family. UM, they just don't have the time
to take their their kids to you know, things like
NASCAR or even any other sports. UM, So if if
if NASCAR could kind of be that bridge to help
(27:42):
bring these people in, um, to to give them that
opportunity they just don't have, that would be huge. UM.
You know. As far as uh, past the ark level,
there really isn't UM, I would say, like another driver
diversity type program that's um really I guess, um continuing
to push people into like uh, you know, Truck's Affinity
(28:02):
and Cup. You know, right now it just really ends
at the ARCA level. UM. Not that you know, there
are people who do go from defer D too, you know,
and eventually into the National Series and stuff. You have
Daniel Suarez, I believe Kyle Larson was part of the
group before Bubba Wallace obviously, UM. And then on the
crew side, there's been people who've done the Deeper D
program who've moved on to be on Cruise like Brianna Um,
(28:24):
Brianna Daniels, she's uh, she's doing really well, and Cup awesome,
she's doing really really good, really cool, cool person. So UM,
you know, but as far as the driver's side, UM,
I feel like there's not really, I guess a drive
for diversity program in the National Series. UM. Now, it's
tough because it just costs money. At the end of
the day, no matter what we all do. Tires aren't free. Um, vehicles,
(28:48):
all this stuff isn't free just cause money. So you know,
and then the companies that make all this stuff they
gotta feed their families too. So um, there's a so
just breaking just break it down to people, what what
what is the average costs? So they so they know,
let's started a decent team that's on the Cup Series.
What does it cost to race per decent team? As
(29:08):
what you say, what you mean by decent um, I
mean that's that's called that's called a mid tiers. Okay,
we can break it into three tiers. Like let's say
I just say a lower budget team, mid budget team,
and high budet team. The lower budget teams in the
Cup Series, I would say each race, you know, depending
on what they're doing and how they're making their money work,
they could be spending anywhere from fifty two hundred fifty
(29:30):
thousand dollars per race um uh. And then mid budget
teams they're probably in that two hundred two four hundred
grand type uh per race budget. And the higher budget
teams I've heard of costs up to eight hundred thousand
per race. UM, and the hurdy give you more actually,
(29:50):
UM so uh it's could it could be really high
and it's pricey and UM yeah, I mean you gotta
think about it like on you know right now, COVID
time is kind of um really UM changed a lot
of different things. But prior to COVID, I mean, you know,
for a full lot men of tires in the Cup
Series for a full weekend, I believe it's like forty
grand or something depending on what track with like forty
grand or forty five something like that. Um. I mean
(30:12):
that's a lot that's just on tires for the weekend,
you know. I mean, and that's not including um, all
the travel. I mean, think of all the haulers the
race cars, getting two of them ready for that weekend
because you gotta have the backup car. UM, all the
people that you're bringing, and you've got all these people
that gotta come to attract to work on these cars.
All the hotels, the flights, UM, the food, all their
(30:33):
all all their cruger that they're wearing, their equipment, the
pit boxes. I mean those things cost as much as
the house. You know, So all this stuff that's going
on it's just that's why it costs so much money
to race. And I'm funny, thing is as much as
the cost to race you know in NASCAR here, it's
nothing compared to what Formula one is around the world,
and Formula one there's their budgets are like ten times
(30:55):
the amount. Oh it's it's ridiculous. And that's that's my
reason for being in m m A. Now it's it's pricey,
but it's fun and and you know, there there are
good to have money. I don't think it's being thrown away.
You mean, as much as you know, I just named
listed a lot of kind of what things cost, it's
not being thrown away. A lot of good is being
done um and and companies who are sponsoring are seeing
(31:16):
great marketing benefits out of it. So there's the reason
why I cost him. I mean, you can you can
go spend a ton of money to have a thirty
second commercial on whatever, you know, TV channel, or you
can spend you know that kind of money on you know,
sponsoring a car in a race and having a you know,
three four hour rolling commercial for the race. So you know,
it just depends on you know, what you want to do.
(31:36):
Once you're uh what your marketing initiatives are? The NFL
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I would surprised me would would kind of be in
(32:41):
a NASCAR uh for the time that I was. It's
not just the lack of like diversity part of it
and people not being in it, but also these these
companies these black owned companies, these big black owned companies
like the like you just talked about the opportunities in
NASCAR and them not being in it. I'm like, man,
do you understand, like if you have a for example,
if you had a product you were trying to sell,
(33:03):
if you're trying to have a product placement or whatever
it is. There's grocery stores, there's convenience stores, there's all
these you know, different companies there's in NASCAR, and there's
one or two pits away from you. There one or
two sweets away from you. I can't tell you how
many meetings I've had, you know, when the raid, before
the racing started. Obviously I'll be there for the drivers
(33:24):
and the team owner meetings and things like that, but
right after that, it's meeting after meeting for me. And
you know, I was just always surprised that there wasn't
more big companies, black owned companies that got into a
NASCAR because of the opportunity there is just on another level, Yeah, yeah,
I feel like there's a lot of black owned companies
(33:45):
that probably could get involved. Um, you know, and and
and you know, we're still obviously working on diversity side
of you know, having more diverse drivers and things like that.
So maybe they weren't getting involved before because they didn't
see that diversity. UM. Right now, I mean, we obviously
are trying to change. It is still not where it
needs to be yet. UM. You know right now in
the National Series, you got me, you have Bubba Wallace. Uh.
(34:05):
You know, Kyle Larson is gonna be really reinstated, UM
here at the beginning of next year. UM. And then
uh Daniel Suarez, uh, you know, Hispanic driver. UM. And
then you know there's females coming up to by the way,
So you know when I say minorities, I don't just
talk about color. It's about females too. So females are
are coming up with the ranks too. So UM, a
(34:27):
lot of different uh diversity initiatives are happening. We still
need more, you know, we need we need a lot
more color, a lot of different variants and genders, UM,
all that stuff just to continue to to to represent
what America is. You know, America isn't just one race.
America is a lot of races. So, UM, let's represent
what the country looks like in our sport. And UM,
you know, obviously give opportunities to people who who can
(34:49):
excel and being great ambassadors of the sport, and um,
you know that's gonna help out. But yeah, I feel like, uh,
you know black owned businesses, Um, you know time is
now jump in you know, support. Um everyone's talking about
wanting to support diversity initiatives and things like that, We'll
want to support the NASCAR. I mean, NASCAR is making
a huge push, I think, bigger than any other sport
out there. And they've taken hard stands um more than
(35:13):
any other sport out there, and earlier than any of
the sports. A lot of other sports are taking a
while to make decisions on Okay, what are we gonna
do here, We're gonna do that. NASCAR just stood up
and was like, look, we're gonna band the Confederate flag.
We're gonna do this. We're gonna do that and and
and they did it like that. Was it like there
always no red tape. It was just we're gonna do it.
Um and and and I love that NASCAR is gonna
take the nice the good stands that they've taken to
(35:34):
to help make it more inclusive. And I'm sure that
wasn't easy for them either to make those decisions. I mean,
you know, the the years that we were working together,
and I was flying to short tracks, the big tracks
wherever it was. You know what it was, Iowa Speedwhale.
It was the track in Monroe, and you know, I'll
(35:55):
never forget, you know, coming there and now fly into
town wherever you're shi kind of meet you there and
going to get my rental card and drive into the
track and going through some of those neighborhoods depending on
where the track was when you It was one time
and I don't know if I never told you or not,
but uh, it was one time. I think I was
(36:16):
one of the tracks. I can't remember what track it was.
I landed there and I was using ways to get
to the track, and it just took me through some
weird neighborhoods and I got it. I said, hold, it
was Confederate flags everywhere. It was everywhere, and I was like,
I was like, I gotta go back on I gotta
(36:40):
go back on the Google map. I kind of gotta
stay on the main road. Crazy. Uh, but you know
I was. I was proud and I was happy the
way that you know, when the whole bubble, all this
thing happened, and how NASCAR came out and it wasn't
like an indecisive thing. It was like, this is what
we're gonna do, and whoever don't like it, deal with it.
And how everybody came together because that was a big step, um,
(37:04):
especially in his a sport like Nascar and kind of
from the outside looking in, and how some people may
perceive the sport and a fan base. So when they
took that stands, I was like, right on, that was
that was dope. I mean, yeah, it was. It was great.
You know, um with the Confederate flag and even the military.
It's funny a lot of people got upset with it,
but even the military, the thing that everyone supports. We
(37:26):
also banned that flag too. I mean we we we
really did a long time ago, but no one really
pushed it enough. Um, And now it was like official, like, hey,
that flight does not belong anywhere on any base because
you know, yeah, it's part of history, but it's not
a nation like the the Confederate flag represents, and in
the nation that no longer exists. The US beat them
in the war. It's done. Um, We the United States
(37:46):
of America owns all this. Now we're not split anymore.
So let's let's get rid of the flag with keeping
in the history books and that's it. You know, speaking
of history books, your your Dallas cowboy, yourself there. They're
making a lot of history. They're they're going through. It's tough.
I I you know, obviously Dak Presscott is hurt right
(38:07):
now and and hopefully gets better soon. Um and can
you know come back stronger? Um it really there's injuries.
It sucks. I mean that that's not a great place
to break anything. Um but uh um, you know, besides
that though, but prior to that, yeah, I don't know
what was going on. I felt like we had a
strong team again coming in the year. We have all
talent in the world. I mean, the offense was producing numbers.
I mean, if you look at the number, I mean,
(38:28):
Dak was out there slinging four hundred plus yards a game. Um,
you know, touchdowns, being scored, all this stuff is happening.
I just I don't know what the defense was really doing.
And we're just lating up too many points. We're making
too many mistakes. Um, I don't I don't don't know. Man.
It's the Cowboys every year. It's just like they gave
you a lot of hope. That's the thing like this.
There's some teams out there who just gave you zero
(38:48):
hope to even start the year. The Cowboys give you
a ton of hope, a le so you leusally start
on the high before you start coming down. You don't
just start down on paper on paper. Everybody hyped up
all year, and they trick you, that's what they do.
And then you know, for being from Maryland, either a
red Skins or a Cowboys family back if your red
(39:09):
skin as a cow but that was it. It was
in one of the two, and so I got to
hear it either way. And I'm looking man, and the
first thing come to my mind is they kept Jason
Garrett two years too long, and they brought the wrong
coach and Mike McCarthy to hand over the keys to
a Ferrari that was kind of like damaged already. You know,
offense line is beat up, and and you know Jeeke
(39:30):
had with three fumbals the other day and they're just
not playing well across the board. And on top of that,
you know you got players in the locker room to
speaking to the media behind closed doors. Now I don't
know if you've seen that. But they came out and
said how unprepared the coaches are. And this is coming
from the players, and you can you can tell by
watching the game when you play ball, like you know,
(39:51):
when you're starting to lose the locker room, that's exactly
what guys do, like start talking to the media, start
going to do stuff behind your back, and it's just
it's just symbolize a very bad team. Yeah, and that's
what they are right now. They're a bad team. So
it's just it's it's fun from me because I get
a chance to talk track to some of my family
who are Cowboys fans still. Um, but yeah, you know,
(40:15):
how does how does that work? Man in the locker room?
And or just even with NASCAR, right, Um, how does
that happen? Because people always thinking of the drivers. They
don't understand like how much of a team NASCAR is
like everybody around If you don't somebody is not spotting
the race correctly and and and I spotted a race before,
(40:36):
which is kind of crazy. You know, Yeah, tell people
with spotting the race if they don't already. Yeah, for
it to be a spotter in the race, you basically
when the drivers on the track. You only have a
certain field division you can only see you know, like
this much. You can't really see anything behind. It's not
like in a regular car where you can look behind
you and all that stuff. You can't do all that
(40:57):
because you're just stuck in the seat and the full
containment that you just can't see. So, um, you need
somebody who's on the radio with you, um, looking around
you and behind you to let you know that, hey,
someone's right behind you there on your right rear, left
rear you name it. So um uh. That person is
called the spotter and they're sitting high up in the
stands where they can kind of, you know, give you
that information. And yeah, you're spotted for. I think it's
(41:18):
a Colorado or something like that. Um. It's funny, but yeah, yeah,
and I was. I was nervous as hell too. Yeah. Yeah,
you know you just spirted you you the eyes and
ears for for the driver who can't see in certain
blind spot. So you know, I just kind of going
out and do it. But no, But back to my point,
(41:38):
I was saying that, you know, people understand how much
of a team NASCAR is, and you have sometimes the
same type of thing happening where you know, stuff gets
out of people talking behind closed doors or what's going
on with the team Like that is not accepted either.
I mean that's that's really frowned upon. Yeah, I mean
that can happen. Um. You know with NASCAR, a lot
of stuff is media. Um you do a lot of
(41:58):
stuff with the media. Um. Period. And you know you
can you can tell when certain teams are having issues
throughout the year. Um, you know, maybe uh driver isn't
getting them out of you know results that they want.
What are wins or whatever it is. Um. Even you
know they might say something to me like hey, you
know it's they could blame it on themselves. They could
blame it on the team, pit, crew, crew chief, whatever. Um.
(42:22):
You know, people throw blame all over the place. Um.
You know, I think the day it's a team sport. Um,
it doesn't take just one person to go win a race.
It doesn't just take two. It takes like the whole
entire team. The crew chief could be phenomenal, the driver
could be phenomenal. But if the crew screws up there
pickers gives up all of a sudden, you know, you
can't win the race. The pickrew could be phenomenal driver.
It could be not having a great day and crew
(42:43):
chief make the best calls and then you know, all
of a sudden, you don't win. So you know a
lot of stuff can happen. So um yeah, I think
everyone being on the same page, everyone always communicating, if
that's what keeps the team together, that's what allows people
to progress, because you're not gonna win every single race,
but as well, but but you can't make progress and
you can't be doing the right things to set yourself
eventually up for a win or or a string of
(43:04):
wins eventually. So um, it's tough. That Star is very
different than any of the sport ever. Really, sport is
just one one group versus the other, and just one
one of them is gonna win. And I start, you
got forty cars out there, so you compete against forty
different people to try to forty different people to try
to get one win. It's it's insane, man. So so
tell what what's next? I've say, you've got some stuff
(43:26):
going on with the Exfanity series now right yeah, um yeah, yeah,
so yeah, so what's so what's I'll do now? And
I wanted I mean, you're moving right now. I mean
that from the from the plan we first started talking
and starting on the Cannons series, which is now the
ARCA ARCA West, UM, but in now moving up to
what what you know when you went to the truck
(43:47):
series and now yeah so yeah, so um, you know,
went from you can and stuff, UM, and then ran
a little bit of ARCA, UM, moved up to trucks.
Ran trucks really since the end of UM and then uh,
I've still run trucks this year. I've been running trucks
this year, but I started running Axfinity stuff as well,
and I will finish off the rest of this year
(44:07):
running Exfinity. UM. This weekend we're running racing at Texas
Motor Speedway, so I'll be racing there. I'm actually flying
out today to go to Texas and uh and then
I'll be racing also at Phoenix International Raceway. So um
yeah yeah Phoenix is awesome. UM. You know, being able
to have the opportunity to racing Exfunity Series has been
you know, something I've been looking forward to for a while. Uh.
(44:30):
And uh, you know my end goal is eventually racing
the Cup Series. UM. You know, just it takes time.
Takes a lot of money, a lot of networking, a
lot of partnerships, a lot of that stuff to get there.
But um, working on getting there and eventually we'll get there,
just is it takes time. So yeah, working on that
and then um, you know, working on a lot of
other big things too that's in the works for you know,
next year hopefully god willing. UM you know, really trying
(44:52):
to boost up the e sports component of UM racing
and as farm you know in and we're in the
middle of putting together e sports tournament UM called Yeah,
so it's called Eracing Association and it's gonna be right now.
Like there's there's other you know, like eye racing type
UM tournaments that people are putting on eye racing that
will uh you know, they give away money and stuff.
(45:14):
The tournaments that we're gonna be putting on on eye
Racing will be giving away big money. We're looking at
giving like ten tho dollars for the prize pool, um
for the tournament. So um, there's not a lot of
tournaments in the past we have done that kind of money.
Um there's some, but not a lot, and we want
to be that one to do it and create a
series of events where people can go compete when money
and this December hopefully someone's gonna have a lot of
(45:37):
Christmas money. So so basically what you're saying is when
you get up to the Cup Series, I gotta come
back on board because we need to get put together
some money. If you've got some stuff you can bring over,
let me know, let us know. Yeah, No, it's uh,
you know, it's just it takes time and money. I mean,
it's just you know, like I mentioned earlier, you know,
(45:57):
nothing's free. You know, the tires aren't free. You know,
the equipment isn't free. The times it's just cost playing.
There's no way around it. So putting together the right
partnerships are what it takes to continue to move forward,
or just having a really big business empire outside of
it and just funding it yourself. Yeah that works too,
all right man, Well, look I appreciate you for coming on.
(46:19):
Good luck this weekend. I wish I didn't have to
fly out for business because I damn sure. I love
the Texas Speedway out there. So yeah, are you? Are
you right in Arizona? Right after that we'll be raised
Phoenix is November seven, So we skip one skip one
weekend and there skip one weekend just following week right, Okay,
(46:40):
maybe maybe I'll meet you out there in the Phoenix.
Now I like that that uh that track. Yeah, it's
cool track, especially since they since they've redone it. Oh yeah, yeah,
they they in the enfield. Well, the thing is with
with the way COVID stuff is they're not really letting
anyone on the infield, but um, which kind of sucks
because that's where like all the fun is down there. Now.
I mean, they really revamped the whole place. It's really
really nice. It sucks I can't really use it this year,
(47:01):
but hopefully next year things will be back to normal.
We'll see. Okay, cool man, Well, good luck this weekend,
we'll we'll we'll figure it out. I'll get out there
the more tracks maybe four the years out all right, cool,
Thank you. I appreciate you guys for listening in to
another episode of the Lights Out podcast with me saw Merriman.
One thing about jesse Man, he's one of the most
(47:23):
hardest working guys I know, seriously, and he talked about um,
you know, him being in college playing football, but also
being having his duties being in the military and his
transition into NASCAR, which was crazy. We got a chance
to meet in two thousand seventeen and trying to bring
really programs and more diversity to the sport. We feel
(47:43):
like it was more opportunity that can be done and
more things that can be done in NASCAR, not just
necessarily being a driver, but also UM having you know,
inner city kids being able to go to tracks and
see what NASCAR's about. Um also talked a little bit
about this his terrible Dallas Cowboys and what they're playing
like this year and the things that going on in
(48:03):
the locked room. But always always great talking to Jesse.
Wishing a lot of luck this weekend at the Texas
speed Way and in a few more weeks at the
Phoenix Race tracks down there, which I'll be going. So
thank you guys for listening it to another episode of
Lights Out with me Seawan Merriman, and make sure you
keep tuning in subscribe, rate us do all those great things.
(48:24):
We're getting some great reviews all because of you, guys,
So I appreciate you for listening. In thunderstruck adjective Shocked
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