Two times Daytona 500 winning crew chief slams NBC for snubbing NASCAR Float from Rose Parade national broadcast

Two times Daytona 500 winning crew chief slams NBC for snubbing NASCAR Float from Rose Parade national broadcast

Ricahrd Petty onboard of the "Always Forward" float

To commemorate the 75th-anniversary edition of the NASCAR, the organization fielded an entry into the 2023 Rose Parade. But many fans were disappointed as the National broadcast of the event missed the float completely. NBC, who is one of NASCAR’s broadcasting partners, didn’t feature the “Always Forward” float.

The statements’ from Rose parade organizers claimed that the Air-time allotted to them ran out after missing the schedule after a float broke down in the middle.  But NASCAR fans weren’t ready to buy these reasons as they pointed out that NBC didn’t even feature the float in their pre-parade reports.

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Two times Daytona 500-winning crew chief Larry McReynolds was one of the many fans who left disappointed by the snub. He quickly expressed his feelings as he spoke about it on the  SiriusXM NASCAR Radio show soon after.

“The parade is basically over and Tanya Tucker is singing right now in the middle of the street. And I realize there’s commercial breaks with 80-something floats. But I’m watching NBC and NBC is a partner with NASCAR and we’re headed into the 75th anniversary of NASCAR and we did not see the NASCAR float on the NBC broadcast,” McReynolds said.

“I guess I’m disappointed. I realize – I’ve been in TV for a long time. You’ve got commercials. But it’s the NASCAR float, and you’re a NASCAR partner, and it’s the 75th anniversary, and you did not show the NASCAR float,” McReynolds added.

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The NASCAR float was controversial even before it made a parade appearance

NASCAR "always forwad" float
NASCAR “always forwad” float

The float was meant to commemorate and represent the rich history of NASCAR. Record seven times cup champion Richard Petty, the sport’s winningest driver, rode on the float to represent its historical achievements. Rajah Caruth, the No:24 Truck Series driver of GMS Racing joined the “King” as the representative of NASCAR’s present and future.

Both choices had a positive welcome from the fans. But, the cars featured on the float with the LA Memorial Coliseum as the background was something that divided the fans. There were no issues with the first two cars to be featured, Petty’s iconic No:43 and his fellow record cup championship holder Dale Earnhardt’s No:3.

The third one raised some eyebrows. It was HMS vice-Chairman Jeff Gordan’s No:24 car. In doing so, NASCAR snubbed Jimmie Johnson, ex-teammate of Gordan, who is a seven times cup champion. Even though Gordan will agree with the opinion, Jimmie is the better driver of the two and maybe the greatest of all time. The four times Cup champion was a great option, but fans have the right to be angry since NASCAR sunbed Jimmie to add him.

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