NASCAR is getting some heat for their upcoming NRA sponsored race on Saturday in the wake of the Newtown school shootings, as Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy has asked Fox to pull the broadcast of the race from Texas Motor Speedway on Saturday due to the hardline nature and refusal of the organization to be open to reasonable gun control proposals.
According to the Associated Press, the Senator wrote to News Corp. head Rupert Murdoch about the situation and that the race will promote an organization that "has been the face of one side of this heated debate" on gun control, which is currently going on in the Senate, although chances are lawmakers will get nothing done because the NRA would rather defend gun makers and others that make money off of firearms.
FOX officials did not comment publically on the letter and Murphy also said that the tracks in Texas should do away with their tradition of shooting six-shooters with blanks after the race. The NRA 500 was announced earlier in the year and after the shootings in Connecticut, the NRA has repeatedly tried to stop any new laws from going through to protect their own image and cash flow.
"I think the fact that they're not loaded is a fairly safe thing," said Eddie Gossage, the president of Texas Motor Speedway.
The NRA has previously sponsored races in the past on the Nationwide circuit, but never on the Sprint Cup. The Speedway is expecting over 150,000 fans and while the political issues have come up, Gossage said that the sponsorship was not about politics, but rather about sports marketing.
Last week Jimmie Johnson won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Martinsville after winning the pole and he will try for a follow up on Saturday.
