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Diversity still lacking

By Dustin Long
The Roanoke Times

Brandon Davis doesn't see a place for him in NASCAR.

The 19-year-old black man says he's not a fan because of the "lack of diversity in the sport."

He is not alone. Nearly 40 percent of Davis' classmates in a North Carolina A&T motorsports course are not NASCAR fans.

While the sport strives to be more diverse, 42 of the 43 drivers in today's Nextel Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway are white. The exception is Juan Pablo Montoya, who is Hispanic.

A year after Bill Lester became the first black to start a Cup race since 1986, no other black driver appears close to competing full time in NASCAR's highest series. Absent a driver to identify with, many blacks disregard NASCAR. The indifference shows up in TV ratings: Black viewership declined nearly 20 percent on each of the four networks from 2004-2006, according to Nielsen Media Research.

"There's nobody to look up to," said Davis, a sophomore from Washington, D.C., noting the lack of drivers.

Lester, 46, remains the only black in any of NASCAR's top three series, but he's in the less-publicized truck series. His age and minimal on-track success -- no wins in 130 career truck races -- create barriers to a full-time Cup ride.

The driver diversity program backed by NASCAR features two black drivers. Lloyd Mack, 23, is scheduled to compete in the Busch West Series. Chris Bristol, a North Carolina A&T grad who turns 29 this week, is still set to drive in the Busch East series even though his previous team pulled out of the program. Bristol said details are being finalized with a new team and that he'll run the full schedule.

Marc Davis, 16, also will compete in the Busch East series, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing. His age and team make him a leading candidate to go to Cup full time, but it will be a few years. He can't race in NASCAR's top three series until he turns 18.

Until one of them, or another minority, reaches Cup, can NASCAR encourage blacks to stay tuned?

"We're not going to be happy unless somebody earns their way and breaks through the way every other driver breaks through," said former NBA player Magic Johnson, who serves as vice chair of the NASCAR Diversity Council's steering committee. "We're going to let minorities know that, 'Hey we've got some people who are earning their way up.' They'll wait three to five years. We'll all be around and we can't wait for that moment."

Others are more anxious for that moment.

"I don't have another five years to wait," said Thurman Exum, who teaches the motorsports classes at N.C. A&T and is a member of NASCAR's Diversity Council.

It's not just getting a driver in Cup but preparing drivers for that level. Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Kevin Harvick each were racing by the time they were 5. With so many youth racing programs, a child who doesn't start racing until he or she is 12 often has little chance of making it to Cup unless they have family ties.

"That's the problem for African-Americans to become drivers," said Brandon Anderson, a 22-year-old senior from Washington, D.C., in the motorsports class. "At 4, African-Americans are not putting their kids into go-karts."

Said Exum: "Maybe that's because we don't know you're supposed to put you in a go-kart when you're 4 years old."

Without any black drivers, some say that there's less connection with the sport, thus driving is not considered an option and children drift toward other sports.

"When we were growing up, if we talked about driving, even in school you were made fun of because of the color of your skin," said Jonathan Dula, a black 20-year-old from Lenoir, N.C., in the A&T motorsports class. "People have the perspective that you being black you're only good at playing football and basketball ... not being a driver."

What can be done?

NASCAR focuses on all areas, not just driving. Marcus Jadotte, who is black and coordinates NASCAR's minority programs.

The sanctioning body helps fund about 20 scholarships for minority students, places about 35 minority students in internships, provides a mentoring program for minority college students at select race tracks, visits historically black colleges and universities, supports the driver diversity program and has a diversity council.

Those programs help build awareness and help increase the number of minorities working for teams or NASCAR.

Few will notice NASCAR's programs until they see a black driver, though. Wayne Clapp said he's had some blacks describe NASCAR's efforts as "window dressing."

"This is their perspective," said Clapp, executive director of the Greensboro-based Association for Diversity in Motorsports. "That is hindering the fan base development."

Jadotte said that NASCAR's diversity efforts are working when drivers can get opportunities instead of being given those chances without earning it.

"We have a system that works pretty well in many ways," Jadotte said.

"It's a system that rewards performance above all else. You're not going to see any team in NASCAR or the sanctioning body itself put a driver into a Cup ride because of some outside pressure." View Article Source:
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