Ever since NASCAR approved Cleetus McFarland to race in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series at Rockingham, some fans questioned the decision, highlighting the former’s lack of racing experience. Amidst this, Kenny Wallace, known for his straightforward takes, jumped in to support the social star, offering a solution to the problem.

Kenny Wallace highlights why McFarland deserves a chance

In the recent ‘Coffee with Kenny’ on Kenny Wallace’s official X account, the former driver shed light on McFarland’s fame and how IT is a significant metric for the stock car racing body. With this, he also mentioned that McFarland can gain experience only by racing.

“Cleetus is a victim of the new society,” Wallace said, directly highlighting the culture of instant reactions that now surrounds the sport’s fanbase. “The new cell phone. Everybody’s on their cell phones. Cleetus is too famous. That’s the bottom line.”

Back then, if you wanted to know what was happening in racing, you had to wait for the newspaper, and even that was often a week behind. According to Wallace, the level of scrutiny Cleetus faces today is simply a byproduct of a world that moves faster than ever and judges even faster.

“Cleetus is a victim of the new quick movement,” Wallace said. “So everybody’s on there, giving their opinions. He doesn’t deserve this. They don’t deserve that. Listen, people. Cleetus has already put the work in.”

Following this, Wallace claimed that he is the best driver at Rockingham Speedway and nobody is better than him there.

“Now, has he been roughed up? Does he have enough experience? Well, he’s going to get it. He’s going to get it. There’s only one way to get it. You’ve got to race. How’s he going to get it? Go to Rockingham. I’m the best at Rockingham. Nobody is better than me at Rockingham. I won my last NASCAR race there. I can teach you the throttle manipulation and what to look out for, and the arcs and the entries.”

NASCAR approved Cleetus McFarland to race in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series after the former tested with Richard Childress Racing’s Chevrolet Camaro SS at the Rockingham Speedway this week. As a consequence, McFarland signed for RCR for the Rockingham race in April.

The renowned YouTuber will take charge of the #33 entry, the car Kasey Kahne drove last year at the same track. NASCAR’s decision to allow McFarland comes nearly a month after his Truck Series approval.

With just six ARCA races to his name, Cleetus McFarland received approval for the Truck Series, and within a month, he received the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series approval, bringing in massive outrage from fans who questioned his race experience.

However, for many experts, McFarland’s fame traded well in NASCAR, which saw a sharp rise in viewership in the Truck and ARCA races. One of them was Mark Martin, who showered all his support on Cleetus McFarland, similar to Kenny Wallace.

Mark Martin supports NASCAR’s decision to approve Cleetus McFarland

Among many others, Mark Martin also hailed NASCAR’s decision to approve Cleetus McFarland to race in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race this season. Addressing his tie-up with Richard Childress Racing, Martin mentioned McFarland’s immense popularity as a deciding factor behind the decision.

“Cleetus McFarland is huge,” Martin said. “He’s an incredibly popular figure on YouTube. He does really great videos and is loved by so many. He is more popular than any Cup driver. He has a stronger following, let’s say, than any Cup driver in NASCAR. So, if we get Cleetus McFarland involved in NASCAR racing, it’s going to be a win for all of us race fans because it’s going to bring more fans and more eyes on our sport.”

Apparently, Cleetus McFarland has a vast fan following outside NASCAR, with over 4.6 million just on YouTube. Besides this, the driver from Omaha, Nebraska, also boasts millions more followers on Facebook, Instagram, and X.

With that said, it makes sense why NASCAR allowed him to race in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series even though McFarland had a disastrous Truck Series debut at Daytona in February this year.