Female NASCAR driver reveals ‘disturbing’ death threats and sexual harassment after part in horror crash
A female NASCAR driver has revealed that she’s been threatened and harassed online following a crash in North Carolina over the weekend.
Katherine Legge was driving the No. 53 car in the NASCAR Xfinity Series – the feeder series to the top-flight NASCAR Cup Series – during a race at Rockingham Speedway.
The British driver appeared to come out of a corner slower than expected and was bumped from behind by the No. 18 car of William Sawalich.
Legge, who has started four times in the Indianapolis 500, also made some contact with the front right quarter panel of the No. 33 machine driven by Kasey Kahne.
After this crash, Legge revealed on her Throttle Therapy podcast that she’s been receiving multiple harassing messages – including death threats – in the wake of the incident. While she hasn’t seen the comments, she says they have been relayed to her.
‘I keep coming to you all with this drama that I hate. It hasn’t been that way in the past, so this is a new phenomenon for me,’ she started.
Katherine Legge says she was subjected to death threats and sexual harassment after a crash in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in Rockingham, North Carolina last weekend
Legge (red car) is a motorsport veteran and a four-time starter in the Indianapolis 500
She made her NASCAR Cup Series debut earlier this season at Phoenix Raceway in March
‘Being a woman racing in NASCAR, it comes with an incredible sense of pride. It comes with a level of scrutiny and harassment.
‘The hate mail, the death threats and the inappropriate sexual comments that I have received on just disturbing. They’re unacceptable.’
She continued: ‘Let me be very clear: I am here to race. I’m here to compete. I won’t tolerate any of these threats to my safety, or to my dignity, whether that’s on track or off of that.
‘Racing is a passionate sport, and I understand fans have strong opinions. I love that and I respect that about our sport. Constructive criticism is part of the game, and I’m always open to listening and improving. I will always take accountability for the mistakes that I make.
‘However, what I think people need to understand is that there’s a line between feedback and personal attacks, and it’s really disappointing to see how often that line gets crossed.’
Describing the incident with Sawalich, Legge said, ‘I stayed on my line and kept doing my speed.’
She added, ‘He charged into the corner a bit too hard, which is the speed difference that you see, and he lifted up a lane into me.’
Legge has raced in the Cup Series this season, making her debut at Phoenix last month. She’s competed in two previous Xfinity Series seasons. The Rockingham start was her first Xfinity race since July 2023.
