The national anthem is crucial to any pre-race event and is sacred to many. However, things did not go according to plan for the NASCAR driver, Luke Baldwin, who was bestowed with the honor of singing the national anthem. 

The fans quickly took note of the cap that hid Balwin’s phone with the lyrics on it and called him out for not knowing the lyrics of the national anthem. The incident occurred during Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s co-owned zMAX CARS Tour at the Caraway Speedway. A video of the same quickly began to circulate on social media.

This forced the NASCAR driver to issue a clarification about the moment. He wrote on his X account stating, “Just to be clear, I know the lyrics to the national anthem. However the last thing I wanted to do was get nervous and mess something up, and look disrespectful. So I figured words in front of me were the best way to make sure that didn’t happen.”

Some of the fans also questioned his ability to sing, to which he responded by saying, "Also I am well aware I can’t sing and I have never claimed to be able to sing.” 

While not everyone approves of the method used by Luke Baldwin, many fans appreciated the efforts he took in trying to show respect. 

Dale Earnhardt Jr. debriefs about the recent race at Caraway Speedway

For a brief recap, Saturday’s schedule was postponed due to the downpour at the track, which means the Pro Late Model and Late Model stock car events were also delayed. However, once the cars hit the track, the on-track action delivered a wonderful race. 

After the event, Dale Jr. spoke about the race, and he mainly reflected on the repaving that took place earlier this year over the winter. 

“They had a little repave at Caraway down in turns three and four, and I watched a couple of practices down in that turn. There are a couple of bumps in that corner that add a little character (to the track). But they did a really, really good job on the surface there at the track.

"One and two in most straightaways remain unpaved or the original asphalt, which really provided a unique challenge. The track was extremely racey… It was pretty fun to watch,” Dale Jr said.

Landen Lewis, the defending champ, won his first race in the Late Model Stock Car division, while Kaden Honeycutt won the Pro Late Model race.

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Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason