Home

NASCAR

NASCAR Spotter Calls for a Second Look at Unfair Rule as Bubba Wallace’s Crew Chief Stares at a Harsh Suspension Following the Disaster in COTA

Published 03/29/2022, 9:15 AM EDT

Follow Us

During the NASCAR Cup Series race at the Circuit Of The Americas, car No.23 driven by Bubba Wallace had its wheel come off while he was racing. This was most probably due to his pit stop in which a pit crew member forgot to tighten the lug nut on that wheel.

As a result, Wallace’s team could face a big penalty in the coming days. That penalty would see his crew chief being suspended for at least four races along with the loss of a couple of crew members.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

But this forthcoming suspension of the crew chief was something spotter Brett Griffin couldn’t wrap his wrap around.

In the recent episode of the Door Bumper Clear podcast, Griffin called out for the change to the rule that mandates the suspension of the crew chief in a scenario like this.

“The crew chief has as much to do with a wheel falling off as the spotter does. I’m sorry, but that rule needs to be revisited. And I don’t know what the right penalty is for that, but at this point in the game, given the fact that there is only, it’s either on or it ain’t,” Griffin said. “Like I don’t agree with this crew chief being suspended for four weeks when he literally didn’t do anything wrong.” 

“It’s not like he said, ‘Let’s leave the wheel loose, and watch it roll around the racetrack.'”

This led to Freddie Kraft, the spotter of Bubba Wallace, chiming in with a question that quite fits the statement – “Have you never been punished at home when you didn’t do anything?”  

Bubba Wallace trades despair for laughter after yet another unlucky weekend

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

This past weekend in NASCAR, Bubba Wallace jumped in the Xfinity Series car before his outing in the Cup car the following day. However, neither of the two went remotely well for the 23XI Racing driver.

On Saturday, Wallace finished in 28th place behind the wheel of the Joe Gibbs Racing car while on Sunday, his race ended on three wheels as he finished 38th.

USA Today via Reuters

After this debacle of a weekend that could get worse with the incoming penalties, Bubba Wallace tweeted, “All ya can do is laugh. Ha.” 

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Shaharyar Khan Chauhan

1,896Articles

One take at a time

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.
Show More>

Edited by:

Ankit Sharma