Looking back at the sway bar scandal of 2008, it’s hard not to smile at the kind of garage stall chaos NASCAR used to serve up. Back then, it felt like a lighthearted blend of spy thriller and garage-bay sitcom, with one missing sway bar, a suspicious paint mismatch, and teams swapping stories that never quite lined up. But Michael Waltrip always chuckled at the idea that it was anything more than a harmless misunderstanding. However, team owner Jack Roush has a far more interesting take.

Jack Roush’s sway bar tale debunked

Roush also claimed the sway bar had distinctive paint, marking it as Roush property, and that paint was sandblasted off before it was returned. Waltrip shrugged it off. “I don’t know anything about that,” he said. “I heard it was painted blue. When we realized it wasn’t our part, we just set it aside.”

Jack Roush’s story looks a lot different. The team owner had laid out a much juicier plotline, one filled with theft, secrets, machining, and fears that the missing part might “wind up in the river” if he tipped off the wrong person. He described its eventual return as a clandestine meeting at 6 am as though the crew members were trading classified materials behind the dumpster instead of handing off a car component.

Waltrip, however, didn’t budge from his stance that the whole thing was about as glamorous as someone grabbing the wrong lunch bag from the break room fridge. According to Waltrip, the sway bar was eventually fished out of a storage room and handed back. “There were no threats. There was no need for threats,” he said.

Even Jeff Gordon couldn’t resist jumping into the fun, grinning as he declared the whole situation “hilarious” and suggested the FBI be called in, clearly joking but also clearly enjoying himself. “I really hope Jack’s not taking it that seriously,” he added.

This entire flare-up arrived just over a year after Waltrip’s team got hammered at the 2007 Daytona 500 for a mysterious substance found in his engine, which NASCAR called an illegal fuel additive. Two crew members were kicked out, Michael Waltrip lost 100 points, and the team was fined $100,000.

And three weeks before this incident, in Atlanta, Roush and team president Geoff Smith resurfaced that controversy, claiming Waltrip’s team had essentially been caught running “rocket fuel.” They argued that Carl Edwards’ Las Vegas penalty, for an issue with the oil tank cover, was unfairly equivalent.

So whether this sway bar affair is a simple case of wrong part, wrong toolbox, or the latest park in a long simmering rivalry, well, that depends on whose version of the story you prefer.

For now, though, one thing remains certain. NASCAR mechanics might want to start labeling their parts with more than a coat of paint. Just in case the next mix-up turns into episode 2. But fast forward to today, and as co-owner, Brad Keselowski has big plans for Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, and another rumor gets slotted into RFK history.

Brad Keselowski slams retirement rumors

NASCAR is definitely in a pickle right now, with leaked conversations putting the sport under a harsh spotlight and sparking a wave of wild, baseless rumors, some of which dragged drivers like Brad Keselowski and Bubba Wallace into fake retirement talk. The 41-year-old driver shut that down quickly, adding humor to clear the air and reassure fans; he is nowhere near done.

Both Keselowski and Wallace have always drawn strong reactions for their driving styles and personalities, but neither is considering stepping away. Just a few days ago, in a playful post on X, the RFK driver poked fun at the very people who once warned him not to trust the Internet, only for them to now fall for Facebook rumors claiming Bubba quit over a white flag, and he was retiring too.

The No. 6 driver wrote, “To all my followers who grew up being told, ‘You’ll never get anywhere in life on that computer,’ or ‘You can’t believe the internet,’ and today are now trying to defend to the same people who read on Facebook how Bubba Wallace is quitting over the white flag and how I’m retiring. I feel you… Happy Thanksgiving! P.S.: I know I’m not retiring. Pretty sure Bubba ain’t either. Thanks for sticking up for us.”

Keselowski understands why some older fans fall for the stories, but he still wished everyone a happy holiday and made it clear once again that neither he nor Wallace is going anywhere.