France Made NASCAR A National Sport

By TONY FABRIZIO The Tampa Tribune

Published: Jun 5, 2007

The man most responsible for guiding stock car racing from the backwoods to national prominence has died.

William Clifton France, who led NASCAR for 31 years before retiring in 2003 and has battled health issues for the past decade, passed away at his Daytona Beach home Monday afternoon. He was 74.

Known as Bill Jr., France took the reins of the family business in 1972 from his father, NASCAR founder William Henry Getty France. He gave up the presidency in 2000 but stayed on as chairman of the board until 2003, when he passed the leadership to his son, Brian.

"I think the biggest thing with his legacy is that his father took this sport to a level and turned everything to Bill, and Bill took it to the next level," said NASCAR Vice President Jim Hunter, who knew France for 40 years. "The professionalism that is in this sport today I think is directly attributable to Bill."

Over lunch recently in St. Petersburg, two-time NASCAR champion Terry Labonte said he doesn't think anyone has ever had a bigger positive impact on motor sports than France.

"I wish he was still running it, just because I'm from his era and I saw what he did and how he ran it, and I thought it was good," Labonte said.

During France's tenure, NASCAR grew from being a Southern subculture that had little national exposure and was often ridiculed for its rough edges into a $3 billion industry and the No. 2 professional sports entity on television after the NFL.

Many elements contributed to stock car racing gaining mainstream acceptance, including heavy marketing by longtime sponsor R.J. Reynolds and television coverage, but they all came together under the steely and monarchial leadership of France.

He Stood Firm On Decisions

France did not have a college degree, and he was neither a polished orator nor slick dresser. But he was exactly what NASCAR needed at the time: a leader who was hardnosed, decisive and firm.

"I think he did an incredible job of basing his opinion on what he believed the facts to be and then having the courage to make that decision and see it through," said driver Jeff Burton, a strong voice among the drivers in the past 10 years.

Said Hunter, "Some of the toughest characters this business has ever known had a tremendous respect for Bill. That's because they knew that even though they might not hear what they wanted to hear, he was going to tell it to them straight."

France would occasionally pull drivers or car owners into a private meeting when he saw something he didn't like. He would ask them if they liked their expensive motor coaches, private planes and lavish lifestyles. When they said yes, he would tell them to toe the line.

He demanded and received respect, and he often won admiration as well.

"Bill France Jr. was not only a leader in our sport, but he was also a very good friend," said former driver and longtime team owner Richard Childress, who fielded cars for the late Dale Earnhardt Sr. "Not only did he teach me a lot about our sport, but he taught me numerous lessons about life."

Schooling Took Place On Track

France was born in Washington on April 4, 1933. He came to Florida a year later when his father and his wife, Anne, relocated to Daytona Beach with $25 and plans to open a garage.

In late 1947, when his father met with other area racing promoters atop Daytona Beach's Streamline Hotel and laid the groundwork for the creation of NASCAR, France was a student at nearby Seabreeze High School.

France graduated from Seabreeze, where he played basketball, and attended the University of Florida in 1951 and 1952, but his most important preparation for his future work took place away from the classroom.

With his 6-foot-5 father building NASCAR and promoting races, France ran the track grader for Daytona's early beach races, constructed grandstands and sold tickets. He flagged events, scored, promoted, served as a steward and even raced a few times in the 1950s.

He understood all facets of the business when his father handed him the reins in 1972.

At the time, R.J. Reynolds was only beginning its long tenure as the title sponsor of the Winston Cup series, and there was no live flag-to-flag television coverage of any races. R.J. Reynolds would invest heavily in the sport, and television coverage would help build a national fan base.

By the time France handed the title of president to Mike Helton in 2000 and CEO and chairman to son Brian in 2003, privately held NASCAR was the most powerful and successful racing organization in U.S. motor sports history.

"I think that it started with his father really instilling in him what it was going to take to make this sport strong," four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon said of France "He's just carried on the vision his father had, and he has taken it to another level … taking it outside the Southeast and making it more than just a stock car racing series.

"It's really the ultimate racing series in America, and I don't even know if he ever knew it was going to get to that level, but it has because of how hard he pushed for it."

France suffered a mild heart attack in 1997 while in Japan for a NASCAR exhibition race. He was diagnosed with cancer two years later, although it was never disclosed what kind. After beating cancer, he underwent surgery for a heart bypass and broken hip in 2002.

Radiation and chemotherapy for cancer left him with breathing difficulty, and in March, he was hospitalized with a virus. Even then, Helton said France was "giving orders, and everybody is responding accordingly."

He Heard Praise And Criticism

Besides heading up NASCAR for more than three decades, France also was chairman of the board of the family-controlled International Speedway Corp., a public company that owns several of NASCAR's most prominent tracks, including Daytona International Speedway.

France retained his position as chairman of ISC after stepping down at NASCAR. He was the company's highest-paid executive in 2006, earning a pay package of $1,327,237, according to company filings.

France had his detractors through the years. NASCAR was criticized from within and outside the industry for moving too slowly on safety matters after the deaths of Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin and Tony Roper in 2000 and for not being more open about its investigation into Earnhardt's fatal crash in the 2001 Daytona 500.

But within the racing industry, France was praised for his foresight and ability to see the bigger picture.

"I think it if it hadn't been for his leadership, NASCAR would have never gotten so big," Labonte said. "He didn't rule by committee. He had people he trusted that he relied on, but he called the shots."

Said Hunter, "To me, he was a John Wayne-type character."

France is survived by is his wife of 49 years, the former Betty Jane Zachary, who is NASCAR's assistant secretary and the chairwoman of the NASCAR Foundation board. Also surviving him are his children, Brian and Lesa France Kennedy, who is the president of ISC, and three grandchildren.

Reporter Tony Fabrizio can be reached (813) 259-7994 or afabrizio@tampatrib.com.