Daytona Beach, FL – It didn’t take long for NASCAR’s newest rookie, Jake “Nitro” Thompson, to decide that stock car racing wasn’t for him. In fact, it only took one race.
The 22-year-old driver, who was hyped as the next big thing in motorsports, made his NASCAR debut at the Daytona 500 this past Sunday. But after just a few laps, Thompson pulled into the pits, got out of his car, and announced he was quitting—citing “a total lack of NOS, explosions, and street racing” as the main reasons for his departure.
“I thought it was gonna be like Fast & Furious,” Thompson said in a post-race interview. “You know, drifting through turns, dodging cop cars, Vin Diesel giving motivational speeches in the pit lane… but instead, it’s just a bunch of guys making left turns for hours. I was so bored, man.”
A Promising Talent… Gone in 60 Seconds
Thompson was heavily recruited into NASCAR after making a name for himself in underground street racing circles (which, according to sources, were mostly just parking lot meetups where he did burnouts in his mom’s Honda Civic). NASCAR teams were impressed by his confidence, raw speed, and, most importantly, his massive social media following, which made him an instant fan favorite.
However, his first official NASCAR race didn’t go as planned.
“Before the race, I asked my crew chief how to activate the nitrous,” Thompson recalled. “He just looked at me like I was crazy and told me to focus on drafting. I was like, bro, I don’t want to write an essay—I want to go fast.”
The Moment It All Fell Apart
Things took a turn for the worse on Lap 12, when Thompson attempted to drift through Turn 3 at 180 mph, nearly taking out three cars in the process.
“I was just trying to make it look cool,” he explained. “In the movies, that’s what you do. But then my spotter was screaming, my tires were melting, and I realized—dang, maybe rubbing isn’t racing.”
Shortly after his near disaster, Thompson pulled into the pits and made the now-infamous announcement:
“I’m out. This ain’t my vibe.”
NASCAR Officials, Fans, and His Own Team React
Thompson’s sudden departure left his team, sponsors, and NASCAR officials completely stunned.
His crew chief, Mike Reynolds, was at a loss for words. “In all my years of racing, I’ve never seen a driver quit during a race because he was… ‘bored.’”
NASCAR officials were equally confused.
“This is a professional motorsport, not an action movie,” said a league spokesperson. “We take safety and competition very seriously. We don’t, and I repeat, don’t use NOS.”
Meanwhile, fans had mixed reactions to the unexpected exit.
- @RaceFan_88: “Dude really thought he was Paul Walker. This is NASCAR, not Tokyo Drift.”
- @LeftTurnKing: “I had high hopes for him, but I should’ve known something was up when he showed up to the track blasting Ludacris.”
- @Fast4Life: “Honestly, respect. At least he left before causing ‘The Big One.’”
Even fellow drivers were amused by Thompson’s misunderstanding of the sport.
“He asked me before the race if we ever do ‘quarter-mile sprints for pink slips,’” said veteran driver Kyle Busch. “I thought he was joking. Turns out, he wasn’t.”
What’s Next for Nitro Thompson?
Despite quitting NASCAR after just one race, Thompson isn’t giving up on motorsports altogether. He’s reportedly in talks with Formula Drift, Monster Truck Racing, and even a demolition derby league to find something that better matches his need for over-the-top action.
“I still want to race,” he said. “But I need flames, jumps, and maybe some cops chasing me to really feel alive.”
For now, Thompson plans to return to street racing and YouTube, where he’ll continue making videos with titles like “I Challenged a NASCAR Driver to a Drag Race (and WON?!)” and “Why I Left NASCAR After 12 Laps”—which has already amassed over 5 million views in under 24 hours.
Final Thoughts
Jake “Nitro” Thompson’s NASCAR career may have been short-lived, but it will certainly go down as one of the most hilarious exits in racing history.
Whether he becomes a drifting superstar, a stunt driver for Hollywood, or just another guy doing donuts in a Walmart parking lot, one thing’s for sure—he won’t be making any more left turns anytime soon.
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