Noah Gragson spent a lot of time alone in the aftermath of his NASCAR suspension with nothing to do but self-reflect.
It was a lot of lonely time and challenging moments, but Gragson embraced the opportunity to better himself. Gragson, 25, cost himself his job driving the No. 42 at Legacy Motor Club after liking an insensitive meme on Instagram about the death of George Floyd. The team suspended Gragson from competing in Michigan the weekend of Aug. 5 and NASCAR suspended him indefinitely.
A month later, Gragson and Legacy parted ways. Gragson was reinstated by NASCAR in early September.
“It’s been a different change in pace, for sure,” Gragson told a small group of reporters on Wednesd ay morning. “My routine obviously had changed, going to the racetrack every week of the last seven years since I started truck racing. It’s been different, but in a good way. It’s been change and it’s allowed me to learn more about myself, self-reflect, and work and develop habits that weren’t the best.
“I’m seeing a psychiatrist, meeting with different folks. I’ve had a tremendous amount of support throughout this whole process and ultimately, I’ve been focused on just bettering myself through the whole process.”
NASCAR-mandated sensitivity training was a part of the reinstatement process. Gragson admitted that saying he was uneducated is an understatement, and he called the program “very impactful.” Given the opportunity to ask questions and learn about things he didn’t understand left an impression. Those points were driven home when Gragson visited civil rights museums in Charlotte and Greensboro, North Carolina, trying to put himself in other people’s shoes to comprehend how they were treated.
Gragson also reached out to Kyle Larson, who went through a NASCAR suspension in 2020 after using a racial slur on iRacing. Larson also lost his ride and was suspended, but was given a second chance with Hendrick Motorsports.
Bubba Wallace was another individual Gragson called. Gragson said he’s learned a lot from Wallace and looks up to him.
“I appreciate his support,” Gragson said.
Gragson said he put Legacy Motor Club and NASCAR in a position of needing to react when made aware of the post he’d endorsed.
“Ignorance,” Gragson said of liking the post in the first place. “I had a lot of garbage on my feed. I was careless when I first got on social media and would accept friend requests from different people and all of a sudden, you’re friends with people you don’t even know and you’ve got garbage on your feed. I’ve become a lot more aware of other people, and I was very selfish in the past and only wanted to do things for me. Through this whole process, I’ve learned how to acknowledge others.
“Everyone is going through stuff. Everyone is going through battles and has their challenges in life, and it’s allowed me just to be open-minded to other people.”
Since August, Gragson has also become a reader for the first time. It was something Gragson always hated and he’s dyslexic, so he never got far into a book. Gragson “got by” in school with required reading, but now he’s actively choosing to do so.
There are other newly-acquired good habits, most of which Gragson summarized as self-awareness.
“Thinking a lot more and using my ears more than I use my mouth,” Gragson said. “You have two ears and one mouth, use your ears more than you use your mouth. I always become a chatty Cathy, pretty talkative, but it’s been impactful to me and a good change of pace to work on solely myself and developing better personal traits and better habits.”
Gragson will begin driving the No. 10 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing next season, replacing Aric Almirola. He will work with crew chief Drew Blickensderfer.
The organization already feels like home to Gragson, and he is open and ready for the structure it will bring. Stewart-Haas Racing employs over 300 people.
“There’s a big difference between love and accountability,” Gragson said. “It might not make sense, but if you have love for someone, it’s hard to keep that person accountable because you don’t want to hurt their feelings. Or if you’re only accountable with somebody and you’re just telling them everything that comes to your mind, they’re not going to like you because they’ll think you’re just digging at them the whole. So, finding that balance. I think a big thing I’ve learned is balance and having that structure around myself.