Tag: Bubba Wallace

Why NASCAR penalized Bubba Wallace, didn’t fine Chase Elliott in 2024

A deep dive into why NASCAR penalized Bubba Wallace while not fining Chase Elliott after the Chicago Street Course in 2024.

NASCAR has laid the hammer down after the race weekend at the Chicago Street Course. On Wednesday morning, NASCAR announced that it has given Bubba Wallace a $50,000 fine after hitting Alex Bowman after the checkered flag. Wallace hit Bowman into the wall on his driver’s side as the No. 48 car had its window net down. The right front tire briefly left the track.

However, NASCAR decided that Chase Elliott’s situation didn’t deserve a penalty. Elliott ran down Daniel Suarez after the checkered flag and showed his displeasure. The driver of the No. 9 car got in front of Suarez and caused the No. 99 car to swerve to the right. Despite Suarez having his window net down, there was no contact with the wall and NASCAR deemed it OK.

So, why did Wallace get a penalty while Elliott left Chicago with nothing? The 23XI Racing driver made contact with Bowman, and it was enough to take the No. 48 car’s right front tire off the ground. In fact, Bowman’s hands apparently came off the wheel, according to FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass. With the window net down, it created a dangerous situation as Bowman hit the wall on his side of the car.

As for Elliott, there was no significant contact, which seems to be the difference between the two situations. Suarez never hit the wall, and while Elliott caused him to swerve right, he went forward without any issues. There was slight contact when Elliott initially reached Suarez, but nothing would have warranted a penalty. According to Pockrass, NASCAR plans to talk to Elliott about the situation.

It’s clear that Wallace’s contact with Bowman was far worse; however, did Elliott deserve a fine, too? Both drivers have been suspended for intentionally wrecking a driver on the track in the last few years. If the past were considered, it would be surprising to see Elliott leave without a smaller fine. If not, it would make sense for NASCAR to only look at this situation, which seems like what happened.

Either way, no points were stripped, so NASCAR didn’t affect the playoff picture. Wallace and Elliott can now move forward as the 2024 NASCAR playoffs start in about two months.

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Bubba Wallace penalized for hitting Alex Bowman at Chicago in 2024

Bubba Wallace has been penalized for hitting Alex Bowman at the Chicago Street Course in 2024. Find out Wallace’s penalty from NASCAR!

NASCAR has released its penalty report for the weekend at the Chicago Street Course, and [autotag]Bubba Wallace[/autotag] has appeared. On Wednesday morning, NASCAR announced that Wallace has been fined $50,000 for hitting Alex Bowman after the checkered flag. Wallace hit Bowman with his window net down as the No. 48 car hit the wall.

The driver of the No. 23 car was spun by the Hendrick Motorsports competitor before the red flag for extreme weather. Bowman said he tried to contact Wallace during the break but never got a response. The driver of the No. 48 car ended up winning the race and clinching a playoff spot, while Wallace finished in 13th place.

Wallace has a history of on-track encounters, including 2022, when he was suspended one race for intentionally right-rear hooking Kyle Larson at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, wrecking two playoff contenders. The good outcome from this situation is that no points have been stripped from Wallace, which doesn’t affect his push to make the 2024 NASCAR playoffs.

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Alex Bowman gives honest opinion on NASCAR possibly penalizing Bubba Wallace

Alex Bowman gives his honest opinion on whether NASCAR should penalize Bubba Wallace for his actions at Chicago. What does Bowman think?

[autotag]Alex Bowman[/autotag] accidentally spun out [autotag]Bubba Wallace[/autotag] before the red flag for weather, and the 23XI Racing driver showed his displeasure. After Bowman shocked the NASCAR world and won at the Chicago Street Course, Wallace drove to him and slammed the No. 48 car into the wall with its window net down. NASCAR will review the incident and announce any penalties this week.

Following the event, Bowman was asked about Wallace’s retaliation after the event and gave his take on whether he should receive a penalty or not. Bowman doesn’t think NASCAR should do anything about it.

“Yeah, I’d do that, too,” Bowman said. “I ruined [Bubba Wallace]’s day. We had a really — the restart was chaotic. I just made every wrong decision I possibly could, and I was fighting with my windshield wiper switch trying to get the thing working, and I couldn’t get it working, and I was focused on that, missed the corner, and cleaned him out. I locked all four tires up and slid right into him. I just messed up and absolutely ruined his day.”

“I’m pretty hard on myself when I make mistakes like that, and I’ve been embarrassed about it since it happened. The rain delay was just a lot of me sitting there being embarrassed and being mad at myself. He has every right to be mad; I’d be mad, too. I tried to call him during the rain delay, and I shot him a text. Nothing I can do to make it better, and I’m sure us winning probably only makes it worse…No, he barely hit me. It was fine, and it was plenty deserved.”

It’s unlikely that NASCAR would give Wallace a points penalty since it was after the race, but a fine shouldn’t be ruled out. The driver of the No. 23 car has a track record after being suspended one race for internationally right rear hooking Kyle Larson in 2022. Bowman is OK with letting Wallace go without a penalty, but it’s ultimately in NASCAR’s hands now.

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Bubba Wallace faces possible NASCAR penalty after incident in Chicago

Bubba Wallace faces a possible NASCAR penalty after his actions on the track in Chicago. Will Wallace be penalized for hitting Alex Bowman?

[autotag]Bubba Wallace[/autotag] left the Chicago Street Course with a 13th-place finish and a 45-point deficit to the playoff cut-line; however, there could be a possible NASCAR penalty this week. Following the checkered flag, Wallace slammed race winner Alex Bowman into the wall as the No. 48 car had its window net down. This came after Bowman spun out Wallace earlier in the event.

NASCAR will review the incident between Wallace and Bowman and announce a possible penalty on Tuesday or Wednesday. Based on the 23XI Racing driver’s history with Kyle Larson at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2022, a points penalty shouldn’t be ruled out. However, it seems unlikely that NASCAR would take points away from Wallace.

In 2023, Daniel Suarez was fined $50,000 for bumping another competitor on pit road around NASCAR officials at Circuit of the Americas. Last week at Nashville Superspeedway, Carson Hocevar was docked 25 points and fined $50,000 for spinning out Harrison Burton under caution. NASCAR could take away points based on Wallace’s history, but a fine would be the logical outcome.

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Wallace ‘tired’ of fighting with points and not wins for playoffs

Bubba Wallace is in an all too familiar position as the NASCAR Cup Series postseason approaches. “I’ll be honest with you, I’m quite tired of having to do it on points, you know?” Wallace said Saturday. “We always seem to find ourselves right around …

Bubba Wallace is in an all too familiar position as the NASCAR Cup Series postseason approaches.

“I’ll be honest with you, I’m quite tired of having to do it on points, you know?” Wallace said Saturday. “We always seem to find ourselves right around the bubble and it gets stressful. Every race that goes by and you don’t win, it gets more and more stressful.”

Wallace is 51 points out of a playoff spot after Joey Logano won last weekend at Nashville Superspeedway. Before that happened, Wallace and Logano had been jostling for the final spot, each taking turns as the driver sitting above or below the cutline. There are seven races left in the regular season, including Sunday’s event in Chicago, and five spots left on the playoff grid.

A year ago, he pointed his way into the postseason. It came down to the regular season finale in Daytona, and it was the first time Wallace qualified for the postseason in his career.

“Knowing that we can do it on points…we did it last year,” he said. “But [expletive], it would be nice just to win. Then you can start doing crazy stuff to try something in the regular season, but right now, we have to play the game and hopefully we’re in the right spot at the right time to win it.

“I know we’re all hyper-focused on that, but we can lose sight of [needing] to go out and do the best we can do and run well. I believe 100 percent in this team; it’s just a matter of doing it.”

Wallace has not won since the fall of 2022 at Kansas Speedway. Both of his Cup Series victories have come late in the year.

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It’s not mathematically impossible for Wallace to point his way into the postseason. Although the gap looks large, he noted that his teammate, Tyler Reddick, earned 51 points in one race — last weekend at Nashville Superspeedway when Reddick finished third.

A driver can earn a maximum of 60 points in a race (excluding the Coca-Cola 600, where there is an extra stage). Knowing that, Wallace doesn’t believe his 23XI Racing team has reached the must-win scenario for the postseason.

“Not yet,” he said. “There are seven [races] left, so just get after it.”

Currently he’s the first driver below the cutline. Alex Bowman is on the bubble going into Sunday’s race (4:30 p.m. ET, NBC) in Chicago.

A win comes through opportunity, and Wallace knows his team needs to be in position for one. So far, he has just two top-10 finishes in the last 10 races with seven laps led.

“You can’t count anybody out, so hopefully, we’re one of those cars that you can’t count out,” he said of the fight on the bubble. “We haven’t had the best stretch of races in a while; it was a nice finish and rebound last Sunday in Nashville, but not how we wanted our race to play out. We definitely wanted to be better in the middle portion, but we’ve just got to keep after it.

“We’re all still hungry. We all know what we’re capable of doing. [Reddick] is showing speed week in and week out, so we just have to have a big…moment of figuring out what we need to do and get us back on track.

“So, here — it’s Chicago. We’ve got to do the best that we can executing and getting as many points as we can. It’ll be fine.”

Wallace qualified sixth for the Grant Park 165.

Bubba Wallace faces dreadful NASCAR playoff situation after Nashville

Bubba Wallace faces a dreadful NASCAR playoff situation after Nashville. Find out the latest on Wallace’s efforts to make the playoffs!

[autotag]Bubba Wallace[/autotag] clawed his way through the field during overtime in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway, earning a seventh-place finish. However, Wallace immediately knew it wasn’t good enough, as Joey Logano won the Ally 400. It meant another driver near the playoff cut-line won a race, making the 23XI Racing driver’s job more difficult.

Wallace leaves Nashville as the first driver out of the playoff picture, but he is 51 points behind Alex Bowman. With seven races left in the regular season, it’s not a true must-win situation for the driver of the No. 23 car. Yet, Wallace needs to find a way to victory lane. With one more winner below the cut-line, Wallace will become the second driver out of the playoff picture.

The 23XI Racing driver is in a very tough spot. On the one hand, a win can solve everything and make the points discussions irreverent. On the other, Wallace can still point his way in if he has a very strong stretch of seven races. It is a really tough spot for the No. 23 team. Wallace can make it disappear with a victory, but the No. 23 car needs to be upfront more often.

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Wallace trying to put private Almirola altercation out of his mind

Bubba Wallace did not offer details about the altercation with Aric Almirola that happened before the race at Charlotte Motor Speedway but surfaced in the media this week. “They don’t want me to get into details; keeps some people’s images good,” …

Bubba Wallace did not offer details about the altercation with Aric Almirola that happened before the race at Charlotte Motor Speedway but surfaced in the media this week.

“They don’t want me to get into details; keeps some people’s images good,” Wallace said at Nashville Superspeedway. “I think I said enough at Charlotte last year, so all in all, life is good for me. That [expletive] happened over a month ago and a lot of good has come my way, and that’s what I’m focused on.

“I’m focused on getting our stuff turned back around and off the racetrack I’m focused on my wife and baby that’s growing and growing. That’s all you can really [ask] for, so things are good for me off track. Not so much on track — that’s what we’re focusing on right now. There you go; that’s the only question you’ll get.”

Almirola was suspended internally by Joe Gibbs Racing before the Xfinity Series race at Charlotte (May 25). He was replaced by Ty Gibbs (who found out he’d be driving mid-week) and the only available information at the time was the organization saying it was a “team decision.” Almirola is expected to return to the seat at Indianapolis Motor Speedway next month.

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Joe Gibbs Racing had no report on the altercation becoming public. It was initially reported by The Athletic.

Wallace’s reference to his comments last year stemmed from the Coca-Cola 600. On pit road at Charlotte Motor Speedway during a rain delay, the two got into a heated debate about their on-track competition. It resulted in Almirola shoving Wallace.

“When you walk around with two faces, that’s what you get,” Wallace said at the time.

Joe Gibbs Racing and 23XI Racing have an alliance, including competition meetings with Toyota. Denny Hamlin, the co-owner of 23XI Racing, didn’t have much to add about the situation or detail about what happened between Wallace and Almirola.

“I don’t really have a comment on it because I wasn’t there at the time,” Hamlin said after winning the pole for the Ally 400. “I don’t know what all transpired. It’s all hearsay from my standpoint. And at 23XI, we let Joe Gibbs Racing handle it and they did what they saw fit.

“Again, I don’t know all the details because I didn’t want to get too much into the personal business and I still don’t.”

Bubba Wallace ‘expected’ to return to 23XI Racing for 2025 NASCAR season

Bubba Wallace is reportedly “expected” to return to the No. 23 car for 23XI Racing during the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season.

[autotag]Bubba Wallace[/autotag] has been with [autotag]23XI Racing[/autotag] since it debuted during the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. Wallace earned the first career win for 23XI Racing at Talladega Superspeedway in October 2021 and has one win since that point. However, will the driver of the No. 23 car return for another year? Based on a recent report, everything points to Wallace continuing at 23XI Racing.

According to FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass, Wallace is not under contract for the 2025 NASCAR season but is “expected” to return for another season. Through 18 races in 2024, Wallace has three top-5 and five top-10 finishes while sitting 13 points below the playoff cut-line. The 23XI Racing driver has been going through a rough stretch, with two top-15 finishes in the last nine races.

Despite Wallace’s struggles after a strong start, his seat at 23XI Racing appears to be safe. There may come a time when fighting for a playoff spot becomes concerning, but the 30-year-old driver is set at 23XI Racing for now. Wallace would much rather win a race this summer, but getting back on the right track is the most important thing for the No. 23 team.

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Almirola expected to return at IMS after suspension following altercation with Wallace

Aric Almirola is expected to be back behind the wheel soon for Joe Gibbs Racing after being suspended by the team for a physical altercation with Bubba Wallace. Almirola’s next Xfinity Series race with JGR is expected to be at Indianapolis Motor …

Aric Almirola is expected to be back behind the wheel soon for Joe Gibbs Racing after being suspended by the team for a physical altercation with Bubba Wallace. Almirola’s next Xfinity Series race with JGR is expected to be at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 20.

The Athletic reported the incident Thursday morning citing industry sources. Joe Gibbs Racing had no comment about the report.

Joe Gibbs Racing has an alliance with 23XI Racing, for whom Wallace is a driver. The two organizations work closely together, including competition briefings. Allegedly, the altercation happened at a meeting.

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Almirola was supposed to compete in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in late May. The altercation happened before that race weekend and he was subsequently sidelined, which raised eyebrows given the lack of information on the driver change. Ty Gibbs ended up driving the No. 20 Toyota Camry, and admitted to the media that weekend he was informed in the middle of the week that he’d be driving.

It is not the first time Almirola and Wallace have had a negative interaction. Almirola shoved Wallace during a heated discussion on pit road during a rain delay in last year’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The incident spilled over from how the two raced each other on the track.

Aric Almirola indefinitely suspended for physical altercation with Bubba Wallace

Aric Almirola has reportedly been indefinitely suspended for a physical altercation with Bubba Wallace. Plus, more details on the situation.

[autotag]Aric Almirola[/autotag] hasn’t raced for Joe Gibbs Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series since Darlington Raceway on May 11, despite having several events on his schedule. Several rumors have been flying around social media regarding Almirola’s absence, and The Athletic’s Jordan Bianchi has now reported one of those wild stories.

According to Bianchi, Joe Gibbs Racing indefinitely suspended Aric Almirola after a physical altercation between him and [autotag]Bubba Wallace[/autotag]. The confrontation took place in a weekly competition meeting, and while the reason for the altercation was unknown, Almirola was viewed as the instigator. However, Bianchi also reported that his suspension will be lifted soon.

Almirola is expected to return for the Xfinity Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 20. This is a unique circumstance, as Almirola would return to the race track in three weeks. Joe Gibbs Racing has kept the physical altercation away from the media after citing it as a “team decision” to remove Almirola from the No. 20 car at Charlotte Motor Speedway in late May.

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