NASCAR today has come a long way from what it used to be. And lately, it’s not been for the better. More short tracks and intermediates, international attempts, the fragmented TV format, and the infamous playoff format discussions have all made the longtime supporters feel that the sport has drifted away from what actually made it special. And now, Jim France and Co. are finally opening their eyes and doing their best to repair that image.

With the antitrust charter lawsuit finally behind them, they’ve gotten a little breather. Now, they’re reaching out to everyone’s TVs by launching their new marketing campaign, ‘Hell Yeah’, which is their way of saying sorry by going back to their “Americana roots” and reconnecting with their blue-collar fan base that built the sport. As they do this, Kenny Wallace is asking, do you accept it?

Hell Yeah? Or Hell No?

Ahead of the Daytona 500 race, NASCAR released its first TV spot of its ‘Hell Yeah’ campaign. Kenny Wallace spoke about the lens he sees this in. “2 months ago, NASCAR came out, and they said, ‘Here’s what we’re gonna do next year in 2026. We’re gonna start cleaning up the mess that we made.’ NASCAR realizes that they’ve pissed all the fans off.

“They said we’re gonna start out with this redneck yell, and it’s gonna be called ‘Hell Yeah!’. ‘Hell Yeah!’. And they literally spell it out on the screen.”

And they do it. In the ad, a non-NASCAR fan asks a hardcore one, “Every year, Daytona 500. What’s the big deal?” The hardcore fan, in typical Earnhardt-fan style, loses it and explains the grandeur of the race in an animated fashion. After listening to his grand monologue, Zane Smith, sitting next to them, goes, “Hell Yeah”. Watch the campaign here:

Wallace then asks the big question. “So you respond right here. Do you like that NASCAR is trying to apologize?”

With tons of controversies that they’re dealing with, whether it’s the backlash to the playoff format, the Next Gen, the schedule, the list is endless. And they certainly don’t want that. So here they are, trying to fix the mess. Do you accept it?

“I do,” says Wallace. “It’s like an argument with your wife. You’re so f—ing mad that you don’t wanna be nice. You almost wanna make it linger on longer cause you’re still not right yet. Where are you guys at? Do you still wanna be mad at NASCAR? Do you wanna be mad at them longer?

“But for me, I’m here, man. I’m here for the apology. I wanna hear what you have to say. I am interested to see what kind of redneck commercials they’re gonna make. I’m excited.”

For Wallace, the fact that they’re making an attempt is enough; it matters less what they’re doing. At least they are. He sees their intent, and that matters more. “I don’t think they meant to (piss off the fans).”

After years of corporatizing the sport and a culture that felt disconnected from fans, this promise to go back to the old ways is enough to have his attention. So is it enough for you, the fans, too?

The plans for the campaign had started in September. Back then, a lot of conservatives had opposed it for using an ‘offensive’ slogan.

Meanwhile, among other things, Wallace also shed light on his own take on the tragic plane crash involving Greg Biffle and his family.

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Wallace’s take on the Biffle crash

While he agrees that nothing is official yet, Kenny Wallace feels that there might have been an engine failure when the plane took off.

“Here’s what I think. I think the plane took off. I think they lost a motor,” Wallace said. “Then I guess it started having a lot of drag on it.”

He explained that when there are a lot of engines involved, even when one of them goes out, it causes other complications that might’ve made it impossible to recover.

“This is my disclaimer. I think that they had a lot of drag on the airplane. I think the flaps were down right.”

In the end, he requested patience from all while the investigation continues.