NASCAR Rival’s President & Co. Caught Disrupting Live Race After Abrupt Firing

Chaos and unprecedented firings haven’t been surprising for IHRA in the past two years, ever since Darryl Cuttell took over the organization. Recently, Leah Martin was fired from her position as the President of the organization; however, the only thing more surprising than that was the course of events that took place, with her husband, the safety director, making some interesting moves, leading to a significant delay in one of the events.

IHRA event faces massive delay after Martin’s sacking

Being the safety director, Justin Martin had some control over the races, and the moment he got to know that his wife was sacked from the position without much explanation, he seemingly took it personally. As per sources, he reportedly forced the pace boat to head back into the pits.

While this should not be a major issue in a NASCAR race, it is a massive issue in boat racing. The pits were around 15 minutes away from the race course. And so, with the pace boat not on the race course in time, there was a significant delay, which was quite unexplained at the time. It is currently unknown if he faced any repercussions for this.

“When he found out [his wife] had been fired right before the start of the Super V and Extreme race, he reportedly had the pace boat head back in to the pits and he disembarked. … That created a major delay to the start of the race.” – @speedonthewater https://t.co/edQL1ltYNR

— Adam Stern (@A_S12) May 18, 2026

Leah Martin’s firing seems a bit unexplained. She created history back in December of 2025, becoming the first woman president of the IHRA. This was a massive move for the upliftment of women in all of motorsports, including NASCAR. What is already a male-dominated field saw a female president, changing the course of history.

IHRA showed early signs of improvement under her command. The initial events in the series’ calendar produced strong numbers, exceeding expectations. The powerboat racing event at Cocoa Beach had 89 registered entries, showcasing a huge improvement in the sport’s overall work. Moreover, IHRA also expanded into offshore marketing, increased the prize payouts, etc.

But behind all of this meritorious work, there were also some issues building up behind the scenes. Reports claimed that certain events had unexplained delays, compressed windows, and there was also strict handling of the media’s (including the photographers’) credentials. These are some of the reasons reported for her abrupt firing. And understandably, it did not sit well with her.

Leah Martin’s emotional comment

The worst part was perhaps the way her firing was announced. There were no ceremonies, no previous hints, just a text from Tommy Thomassie, the new IHRA President, that read:

“The International Hot Rod Association and Leah Martin have parted ways effective immediately. The organization appreciates her efforts and contributions over the past several months and looks forward to continuing to build on its momentum across all disciplines.”

There was no immediate comment from Leah Martin on the situation. A day later, however, she broke her silence, and what she revealed also exposed the dark reality IHRA might be heading into.

“Yesterday, I was informed that my time with the IHRA has come to an end,” she said. “The conversation and circumstances surrounding it were unexpected, especially after meeting personally with Darryl just a couple of hours earlier with no indication that a change was coming. I was later informed that a meeting had taken place the night before at a hotel room regarding the decision.”

Since Darryl Cuttell became IHRA’s owner in 2024. There have been quite a few unexplained leadership changes. This includes the firing of former COO Scott Woodruff, who revealed that he was also sacked with a text message. There was no explanation whatsoever, as the text simply read, “fired”.

There were some other sudden exits, too, including the former president, Kenny Nowling. The official release said the split was “effective immediately.” Others who exited the IHRA following a massive restructuring were Rich Schaefer, former division director, and Christian Byrd, who left in April of 2025.

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