Noah Gragson suspended over meme with George Floydâs face on Little Mermaid character

Noah Gragson won’t race this weekend.

Legacy Motor Club, the NASCAR team Gragson competes for, has suspended its 25-year-old driver ahead of Sunday afternoon’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway. NASCAR as a sanctioning body later served Gragson an “indefinite suspension.”

The double suspension is served after Gragson liked a meme on Instagram, per media reports. The meme reportedly showed the face of George Floyd Photoshopped on a movie character from Disney’s Little Mermaid — Sebastian — with the caption, “under the knee.”

In a statement, the race team said that it decided to suspend Gragson “regarding his actions that do not represent the values of our team.”

About an hour after Legacy Motor Club’s announcement, NASCAR came with its own ruling.

“NASCAR fully supports Legacy Motor Club’s decision to suspend Noah Gragson,” the sanctioning body wrote. “Following his actions on social media, NASCAR has determined that Gragson has violated the member conduct section of the 2023 NASCAR Rule Book and has placed him under indefinite suspension.”

Gragson has since delivered an apology via Twitter.

“I am disappointed in myself for my lack of attention and actions on social media,” Gragson wrote. “I understand the severity of this situation. I love and appreciate everyone. I try to treat everyone equally no matter who they are. I messed up plain and simple.”

It is unclear when either of Gragson’s suspensions will end. He sits 33rd in points with four regular-season races left in the 2023 season.

Josh Berry will drive the No. 42 entry this weekend in Gragson’s stead. Berry drives for Junior Motorsports in the Xfinity Series full-time and will get his full-time shot in Cup next year with Stewart Haas Racing.