Infamous NASCAR 'Conman' Resurfaces After 40 Years In Hiding
Jake Massey
Featured Image Credit: Scene Vault Podcast/NASCAR/YouTube
An infamous NASCAR 'conman' has resurfaced after 40 years in the shadows.
L.W. Wright made a name for himself 40 years ago to the day, when he made his first - and last - appearance in the sport.
He qualified for the 1982 Winston 500 at Talladega in 36th place, despite the fact that nobody on the circuit had ever heard of him.
You can watch the race here:
The fraudster, from Nashville, Tennessee, claimed he had in fact competed before, but after 13 laps he was disqualified for being too slow.
Advert
Legend has it that he subsequently abandoned his car and vanished, leaving behind a load of unpaid debts. Over the decades since, his story has lived on in the sport, but nobody has heard a peep out of him.
But at long last, he has been tracked down.
Motorsports journalist and host of The Scene Vault podcast Rick Houston had been trying to find him for more than a year, and last month he heard that the elusive figure was at last ready to speak.
Houston was instructed to drive to a highway, where someone would meet him and take him to Wright.
Houston said Wright told him that his real name was Larry Wright, and he showed him the suit he wore for the race to prove his identity.
Wright crashed on his second qualifying lap, but his car was repaired for the race; however, it ultimately proved too much of a challenge for the blagger, and officials gave him the black flag for his own safety.
In his interview with Houston, Wright said he'd never seen the track before arriving at the race.
He said: "I looked over at my brother and I said, 'Lord, have mercy. Ain't no way. Lord, I'm down here, but I'm gonna need some help'."
Houston said Wright has decided to finally come forward because he is in poor health and wants to make sure his side of the story is out there.
You can listen to excerpts of the interview on the latest episode of the The Scene Vault Podcast. The episode info reads: "You know the legend of L.W. Wright. Now meet the man.
"The driver known as L.W. Wright made the first and only start of his Winston Cup career on May 2, 1982 at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama. He'd not been heard from in the FORTY YEARS since ... until now.
"May 2, 2022 marks the 40th anniversary of that iconic Talladega event, and for the first time ever, portions of an extensive interview with the man who went by the name L.W. Wright are being released ONLY on The Scene Vault Podcast."
If you have a story you want to tell, send it to UNILAD via [email protected]