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Bubba Wallace’s Spotter Freddie Kraft Puts the Blame on the Current Playoff System in NASCAR After Ross Chastain-AJ Allmendinger Drama in COTA

Published 03/31/2022, 10:55 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

“To win.” This is the answer you’d find if you ask a NASCAR or a car racing fan, “Why do racecar drivers race?” And it’s only fair. After all, winning is the goal. But then again, was Ross Chastain’s move on AJ Allmendinger right to win the race in Austin? Some would say it was, some would say it wasn’t. However, Freddie Kraft, the spotter of Bubba Wallace, thinks it was neither right nor wrong. The move was simply a product of the current playoff system.

In the recent episode of the Door Bumper Clear podcast, Freddie Kraft shared his opinions on the controversial late race move by the Trackhouse Racing driver.

This was a move that got him to the victory lane, but it left AJ Allmendinger spinning to the back of the grid from the lead. But Kraft believes it’s what we should expect considering how important winning is in NASCAR today.

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“When Ross (Chastain) made this move, this was his only option, this was the only way he’s winning this race. It’s if he figures a way to technically wreck both of the guys in front of him because he was third in line coming in to the last set of corners,” Kraft said. “This is what we kind of got to expect because we’ve put all this emphasis on winning.”

“This is what we wanted when we went to this playoff system – win at all costs. Winning is the most important thing.

Bubba Wallace faces huge blow in a season tainted with bad luck so far

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After his tire came off during the race in Turn 16 on Lap 45, Bubba Wallace and his team have been issued fresh penalties by NASCAR.

Three members of the No.23 team of 23XI Racing have been suspended for four races. Wallace’s crew chief, his jackman, and his tire changer are the ones who will miss the next month of racing action due to this penalty.

USA Today via Reuters

As a result, Dave Rogers will be Bubba Wallace’s crew chief for the next four races.

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Written by:

Shaharyar Khan Chauhan

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Shaharyar is an F1 & NASCAR writer at EssentiallySports. A graduate in Journalism from Amity University, he has been a passionate follower of motorsports for a better part of the decade. A Max Verstappen and Ferrari supporter, he dreams of a pairing of the two in future.
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Edited by:

Ankit Sharma