Didn't this happen right after he painted his car for BLM? So, he had some activists hanging around to show of his car to, one of them saw an opportunity and ran straight away to scream at NASCAR officials about racisms, and NASCAR officials saw an opportunity to virtue signal in order to placate the irate activist. And now they have no way of walking this back, so they'll just double down and focus on inclusivity and tolerance while never specifically mentioning the 'noose' again.