‘Despicable act of racism’:

Noose found in Black NASCAR driver’s garage stall.

TALLADEGA, Ala. — NASCAR said late Sunday that a noose was found in the garage stall of Bubba Wallace at the NASCAR race in Talladega.

Wallace is the only fulltime African American driver in NASCAR’s elite Cup Series. Less than two weeks ago, he successfully pushed for NASCAR to ban the Confederate flag at its tracks and properties.

NASCAR said it has begun an investigation into the noose.

“Late this afternoon,

NASCAR was made aware that a noose was found in the garage stall of the 43 team. We are angry and outraged, and cannot state strongly enough how seriously we take this heinous act,” NASCAR said in a statement. “We have launched an immediate investigation, and will do everything we can to identify the person(s) responsible and eliminate them from the sport.

“As we have stated unequivocally, there is no place for racism in NASCAR, and this act only strengthens our resolve to make the sport open and welcoming to all.”

On Twitter, Wallace said the “the despicable act of racism and hatred leaves me incredibly saddened and serves as a painful reminder of how much further we have to go as a society and how persistent we must be in the fight against racism.”

Wallace ended the tweet by writing:

“As my mother told me today, ‘They are just trying to scare you.’ This will not break me, I will not give in nor will I back down. I will continue to proudly stand for what I believe in.”

The noose was discovered on the same day NASCAR’s fledgling flag ban faced its biggest challenge. The ban took effect before last week’s race near Miami, but there were only about 1,000 military members admitted into that race. At Talladega, in the heart of the South, as many as 5,000 fans were allowed in, even though rain postponed the race until Monday. The race will air on KTVU (Channel 2) at noon.

There weren’t any immediate reports of how many, if any, flags were confiscated or taken down at the track.