NASCAR news: Cody Ware arrested on assault charges, suspended indefinitely

Cody Ware of the NASCAR Cup Series has been arrested on assault charges and has been suspended indefinitely by NASCAR.

In a rather troubling development, 27-year-old Cody Ware, a full-time driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, missed Sunday’s race because he had been arrested on assault charges.

Reports indicate he allegedly assaulted a female and inflicted serious injury on her in North Carolina.

Ware drives full-time for Rick Ware Racing in the Cup Series, a team owned by his father, Rick. He has been in the sports’ highest series on a full-time basis since 2021 after debuting back in 2016. His best career finish came in August of 2022 at the Daytona race when he finished sixth.

NASCAR news: Cody Ware arrested, suspended indefinitely

Such a development is always scary to hear about. Ware had previously tweeted out (in 2018) that he deals with severe depression and anxiety, followed up three months later with a Facebook post announcing that he has Asperger syndrome.

A troubled man with a troubled past, this incident could very likely mark the end of Ware’s brief and uninspiring career in the sport.

Unfortunately, this is not the first time RWR has been plagued by incidents of this nature. Cody’s younger brother, Carson, briefly competed in NASCAR’s Xfinity and Truck Series before being arrested in October of 2021 for assault and property damage charges.

While NASCAR lifted the suspension on Carson in June of 2022, he has yet to make a return to any of the sport’s top three levels, and it’s unlikely that he ever will.

In Cody’s absence, RWR tabbed Matt Crafton, a multi-time champion in the Truck Series, to replace him at the Bristol Dirt Race. Crafton, 46, had car troubles and earned a DNF, finishing 34th.

One name that has already begun to circle in the rumor mill is Cole Custer, a former Cup Series winner who was demoted to the Xfinity Series this year thanks to years of poor performances in the Cup Series. He could very well be the replacement for Ware on a long-term basis, but nothing has been announced and, obviously, there are more important things to worry about with this troubling incident.