A second noose was found at a NASCAR track, adding more controversy to the association's reckoning with racism

• The noose is Bubba Wallace's garage stall wasn't the only one found on NASCAR property this weekend.
• A second noose was discovered at Sonoma Raceway, a Sonoma, California-based track that has hosted NASCAR Cup Series races for more than three decades.
• The Sonoma County Sheriff's Department is investigating the matter after an employee at the course came upon the noose hanging from a tree.

All eyes were on Bubba Wallace Monday.

On Sunday, a noose was found hanging in the garage stall at Talladega Superspeedway belonging to Wallace, who is the only Black driver currently competing in the association's Cup Series.

But while the world watched Wallace — an outspoken proponent of the Black Lives Matter movement and an advocate for change within the sport — enjoy an emotional moment of solidarity with the NASCAR community before the GEICO 500, an investigation into another purported act of hatred was underway on the other side of the country.

On Saturday, a second noose was found on NASCAR property.

An employee at Sonoma Raceway — a Sonoma, California-based track that has hosted NASCAR Cup Series races since 1989 — came upon a "piece of twine tied in what appeared to be a noose hanging from a tree on raceway property," according to a statement released by track President and GM Steve Page, per NBC Sports.

"Our staff, on-site business tenants and local law enforcement have been contacted and asked to share any information they may have," Page added. "The incident is under investigation by the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department. Sonoma Raceway takes this incident very seriously and is dedicated to operating a facility that is welcoming to everyone."

Though unlikely, it remains unclear whether the noose at the California track has any connection to the one found in Wallace's garage stall the following day. NASCAR and FBI investigations are underway at the track in Lincoln, Alabama, and Wallace has been consulted on the matter.

Both racist acts come mere weeks after NASCAR — which has deep Southern roots and a strong base of support in the region — instituted a total ban of Confederate flags at its events. Wallace was instrumental in the association's decision to separate itself from a long history of condoning and, at times, outright supporting the flying of the outdated, racist symbol that serves as a relic of the United States' original sin.

Some fans vowed to boycott the stock car racing series as a result of the new rule, and others gathered outside of the Talladega Superspeedway Sunday to protest the decision by brandishing Confederate flags. One anonymous individual even flew a Confederate flag and a banner that read "Defund NASCAR" over the track Sunday afternoon.

It's more than possible that the nooses at both NASCAR venues were a response to the association's recent push for a progressive community and atmosphere at its events. President Steve Phelps and NASCAR leadership have vowed to ban whoever hung the noose in Wallace's garage stall from the sport for life, and it's likely the organization would respond similarly to the perpetrator behind the noose at Sonoma Raceway.

• Read more:
• All signs suggest the noose left in Bubba Wallace's garage was an inside job and NASCAR has vowed the person will be 'banned from the sport for life'
• NASCAR drivers staged a beautiful display of support for Bubba Wallace — NASCAR's only Black driver — pushing his car and standing with him during the national anthem after a noose was found in his garage stall
• A plane toting a banner with the Confederate flag and reading 'defund NASCAR' flew over the track at Talladega in protest of its ban from all races
• A noose was found in the stall of a Black NASCAR driver — just hours after Confederate flags flew over the track at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama