That settles it... Im buying a new car!

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

NASCAR ratings get a boost after Confederate flag is banned from races

Based on the overnight TV ratings for Wednesday's Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway, NASCAR's decision to prohibit the display of the Confederate flag at its events and properties did not negatively impact viewership despite pushback from some of its fans. Quite the contrary.

Wednesday night's race at Martinsville, which started just a couple hours after NASCAR released a statement on its banishment of the flag, delivered massive numbers relative to comparable past Cup Series races.

The overnight ratings were up 104 percent "over the comparable race last season," per Fox Sports executive vice president Michael Mulvihill a rating of 1.14 compared to 0.56 for the 11th race of the season last year, an event at Dover International Speedway presented on the same channel (FS1).

The ratings for Wednesday night's race at Martinsville also were up 16 percent over the last weeknight race on FS1, the rain-delayed event at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 28. The Wednesday night race at Darlington on May 20, the first mid-week Cup Series event since 1984, drew a rating of 1.22 on FS1.

NASCAR's decision to ban Confederate flags at races was met with predictable anger from a portion of its fan base. The comment section below NASCAR's tweet, for example, was flooded with comments like "NASCAR has gone too far" ... "This is the last straw" ... "You have lost a customer."

But the move also seemed to open the floodgates for people who previously had shunned NASCAR over perceptions of racism that were reinforced by the presence of the Confederate flag at races. Saints running back Alvin Kamara, for example, quote tweeted NASCAR's statement and asked, "when (is) the next race?" Driver Bubba Wallace responded, "tonight," and Kamara proceeded to tweet about the race all night.

Wallace, of course, ran a special "Black Lives Matter" car Wednesday night at Martinsville, a paint scheme that drew public praise from LeBron James among other prominent stars outside of NASCAR. Wallace finished the race 11th.

Kamara clearly was not alone in his pivot. The ratings suggest those who claimed on social media they were suddenly interested in watching a NASCAR race in the wake of the announcement did just that Wednesday night.