Friday evening the NBA Charlotte Bobcats hosted NASCAR Night with the Bobcats at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Uptown Charlotte. Playing the Phoenix Suns before a packed house, the Bobcats put a whooping on the competition and honored some of NASCAR's biggest stars at the same time.

NASCAR's newly announced Drive for Diversity team was on hand, signing autographs for fans in the concourse, while all throughout the arena fans were able to get a close look at some real NASCAR stock cars.

Also on hand were representatives from the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation. "We've had between 110-115 people stop at our table and give us their contact information," explained Amanda Jones, in charge of Media Relations for the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation. The Foundation had a table full of Martin Truex Jr. memorabilia and was raffling off a gift basket during the third intermission. For fans that came up to the table, Foundation representatives gave away hero cards and pins of Truex Jr.  "A lot of people that came up to us said they came tonight because it was NASCAR night," Jones added.

During halftime, former Cup Series champion and ABC/ESPN announcer Rusty Wallace made his way to center court with the Sprint Cup trophy. Honoring 3-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson, the crowd enjoyed a brief highlight video of this year's Chase.

Unable to attend the event due to competing in this weekend's Rolex 24 at Daytona, Johnson appeared on the jumbotron to thank the fans in the crowd and the Bobcats organization.

While Johnson could not make the game, there were a number of NASCAR stars present throughout the crowd. Jeff Gordon was on hand, Jeff Burton enjoyed the game from the press box, Hermie Sadler was seen roaming around, while Jamie McMurray and Dale Jarrett enjoyed court-side seats.

A new-found fan of the NBA and the Bobcats, McMurray explained he and his girlfriend Christy have recently started attending Bobcats games, with good results. "Christy and I have been to about four or five [Bobcats games] and they've won every one of them," McMurray told HardcoreRaceFans.com. "It just kind of works out where we?ve gotten into this and probably not having to test has given us more time."

Sitting one row from court-side seats, McMurray explained he did not have a lot of fan interaction Friday night, but explained, "It's fun when they put our face on the jumbotron and they booed Jeff Gordon, that was pretty cool."

"This is just a great event," former Cup Series champion Dale Jarrett told HardcoreRaceFans.com. "Obviously, Charlotte is a big place for NASCAR racing, but also having the Bobcats here - especially now that they're playing well - is a lot of fun. To have about a packed house here tonight, this is a pretty special night out here and nice that they invite us out here on a special night for them too."

An avid basketball fan, Jarrett explained that being retired from driving has freed up his schedule a bit, but not as much as he would like.

"You'd think I'd have a little bit more time," Jarrett went on to say. "I've been pretty busy. My 14-year-old son Zack is still in school and playing basketball, so we don't get to as many games as we'd like to.

"There have been quite a few fans that have come by," Jarrett added. "Of course we have Jeff Gordon, Jamie and some other guys here so 
they're pretty excited about that, along with being a great basketball game."

Speaking with Wilson Davis, a fan examining the engine of the No. 26 Ford Fusion, he explained he would like to see a race in person one day. When informed that tracks are now lowering ticket prices to better accommodate fans, Davis' eyes widened at the prospect of his first race.

While the NBA and NASCAR may seem worlds apart, Friday evening proved that anyone can be a NASCAR fan. Racing jackets of every kind were abundant throughout the crowd and fans of all walks of life proudly carried their Jimmie Johnson die-cast cars. All-in-all the night was a success, NASCAR was represented well to a crowd of potential fans and the Bobcats didn?t do to shabby either, beating the Suns 98 to 76.