“People Like This Ruin Everything”: Fans Furious as “Karen” Sues Legendary NASCAR Team for Absurd Reason

Dec 20, 2022 | 5:15 AM EST

“People Like This Ruin Everything”: Fans Furious as “Karen” Sues Legendary NASCAR Team for Absurd Reason

Dec 20, 2022 | 5:15 AM EST

For fans, every bit of sporting action is precious. People pay insane amounts of money for the courtside seats at an NBA game. They would prefer getting barged into by a 6-foot, 200-pound man running at full speed than sitting a few rows behind. The same goes for NASCAR. But sometimes, things can go awry too.

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Something similar to courtside seats isn’t a possibility in motorsport racing sports like NASCAR and Formula 1. There’s possibly just one reason for that – the safety of fans. Given how fast cars go when racing, and how violent accidents are, those risks can’t be taken.

Hot passes give the fans more accessibility

But these sports have devised new ways to get fans closer to action. The hot and cold garage passes are special entry passes that are available for purchase at premium prices. These VIP packages offer fans access to garages, haulers, and the pit road. Such access is priceless for fans who are willing to pay higher prices in exchange for meeting their favorite drivers.

The Race Day Sponsor website pointed out, “With hot passes, you are going to have more access to the drivers for pictures and autographs while seeing how fast the cars are up close. Also, with hot passes, you can watch the race from ground level on pit road and celebrate in Victory lane if your team wins.”

However, recent litigation in California has shown what troubles might come up for the organizers in such cases. According to publicly available records, the plaintiff had a hot pass for LVMS and was standing on the pit road. A crew member of Woods Brothers Racing was pushing a generator cart that touched the plaintiff and caused them to fall down.

Despite signing a waiver, the plaintiff decided to pursue litigation against the team.

The absurdity shocked NASCAR fans

Only a select few – those who can afford to pay for these premium packages – get to go on the pit road. And they go after signing a waiver of liability. But to still go and sue a team didn’t go down well with fans.

A U.S. Court of Appeals panel in California has ruled in favor of Wood Brothers in suit from LVMS fan who was hit by a pit cart being pulled back to garage. Court upheld lower court ruling enforcing the hot pass waiver the fan signed that absolved team/team members of liability.
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) December 19, 2022

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This is the equivalent to getting upset when you get run over by an NFL player while standing on the sideline https://t.co/kPaNU0vKf1
— Ryan Pistana (@ryanpistana) December 20, 2022

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People like this ruin everything. No sport lets you get closer than NASCAR https://t.co/BeKUZruRfI
— KL5 (@LarsonKL5) December 20, 2022

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So let me get this straight a fan gets a hot pass has to sign the waiver then gets hurt and then sue lol that's it I'm calling Karen lol
— Dave 🇺🇸 (@Scotty_1959) December 19, 2022

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That person should longer we near a race. You choose to be in garage/ pit area…. It is at your own risk.
— RacingonDirt (@410sprintandmod) December 19, 2022

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People will sue for just about anything
— Ray (@realRayBurgess) December 19, 2022

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It baffles me how entitled some fans feel. May seem like a great awesome vip experience, but at the end of the day, they’re in someone else’s fast pace work setting. The work doesn’t stop so you can stand in the way and take a picture. You visit the swamp you get a lil dirty.
— Connor (@ConnorBunn) December 20, 2022

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Garage should require a IQ test before entry https://t.co/5fFLUvXSRF
— Aaron Fisher (@racer48racer) December 20, 2022

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Do you agree with the fans’ view on this one?

Written by

Abhay Tyagi

514 Articles

Abhay Tyagi is a Formula 1 and NASCAR author at EssentiallySports. Although he has completed his undergrad in Law and Management, he has confidently ventured into the exciting field of sports journalism. With a special affinity for Engineering and Speed, Abhay has always found the world of Motorsports quite exhilarating. Having been an avid follower of Motorsports for over 5 years now, he is an ardent supporter of Max Verstappen and hopes some other driver can soon challenge the Flying Dutchman so that the sport stays thrilling. Other than rooting for Verstappen and Red Bull, he loves to watch Manchester United play, and on other days, you can find him listening to Bon Iver and The Paper Kites.

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Edited by

Akash Pandhare