With his Rockingham debut in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series approaching quickly, Cleetus McFarland remains a bone of contention in the NASCAR world. The YouTuber-turned-driver, who has a mere six ARCA Menards starts under his belt, will be taking charge of a Richard Childress Racing entry, taking most people by surprise. And while most people have had their say on the matter, perhaps no critic was as harsh as the legendary Mark Martin.
Mark Martin Tears Into NASCAR’s Approval Process Ahead of Cleetus McFarland’s Rockingham Debut
When he made his Truck Series debut at Daytona earlier this year, McFarland attracted a significant chunk of new viewers to the sport, but that was perhaps the biggest pro of the entire tale. While an argument can be made that Tony Stewart’s return boosted viewership, McFarland’s YouTube popularity cannot be denied.
However, the hype faded away quickly, with McFarland crashing out of the Truck Series race inside seven laps of the start, much like he did during the test run ahead of the debut.
Overall, it was an attempt to forget for the 30-year-old, who was advised to stick to the ARCA Menards series for now. However, in a bombshell update, RCR announced a two-year partnership with McFarland, leaving almost the entire NASCAR world asking questions.
And while Martin isn’t questioning RCR’s decision to sign McFarland, he still has a bone to pick with NASCAR’s approval process for a driver.
In a video uploaded to X by Charlie Marlow, Martin explained that qualifying sessions should never be taken as proof that someone is a good driver.
Explaining that tracks such as Talladega are relatively easier to drive on, he claimed that anyone could qualify by recording the same lap time just by holding the throttle wide open and steering around the track.
“Driving Daytona Talladega, once again, is easy. You need no real experience. I said once that my mother could qualify at the same speed as me at Talladega, and she could because all you do is go out there and steer it around and hold it wide open. It gets a little more difficult in a race, and don’t come at me with all that “you know” garbage.”
He added that, given his extensive experience racing in NASCAR, Martin knows the skill it takes to lead a pack in any given race. Meanwhile, driving at the back or in the middle doesn’t require as much skill.
Notably, Martin isn’t the only celebrated driver to question McFarland’s inclusion in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (ORAPS) race, with the likes of Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch also chiming in.
In one of his recent Actions Detrimental podcast episodes, Hamlin cited McFarland’s Daytona debut when questioning giving an ARCA driver a shot at an ORAPS race.
For Hamlin, McFarland never once looked in control of his truck, and he was certain that the race would not end well for the driver before actually seeing him crash out of the event. As such, even Hamlin called for NASCAR’s approval process to become more stringent.
Meanwhile, Busch criticised the entire process, pointing out that his son, Brexton Busch, had more race-running experience than McFarland.
As such, most industry insiders feel it is unhealthy for NASCAR to allow inexperienced drivers to race in the higher tiers of the sport and want to see a revamped approval process that aligns with the level of competition.
