There is a lot you can say about NASCAR. Who is the best driver. Whether the Car of Tomorrow is as good as it’s touted to be, or what exactly is cheating, and what is just grey in the rules. But one thing not to do is question whether NASCAR officials are right.

Tony Stewart learned that answer, and NASCAR made sure everyone knew it. Penalties and fines may catch the attention of papers, and fans, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. Owner Eddie Wood said that in a conversation once,

“Bill France Jr. turned around a said, ‘Just remember, I have the black flag no matter where I am.’ I got the message then, and I never forgot it.”

That flag doesn’t have to go on the track. And often doesn’t. But the drivers and teams know that it can hit them and when. In the words of Richard Petty,

“It’s like somebody getting a ticket. You’re always guilty. It’s just every once in a while they catch you.”

As Tony Stewart backs off his claims that NASCAR manipulates races and has made the sport more akin to professional wrestling, his ticket is being paid and the flag is getting put away. Remember, some dirty laundry just doesn’t get to be aired publicly.

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