Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 48 NASCAR Chevy Camaro ZL1, crossed the line first in a darkness-shortened race on the Chicago Street Course on July 7th, 2024, but the drama didn’t stop after the checkered flag dropped. Bubba Wallace, driver of the No. 23 Toyota TRD Camry, doored Bowman on the cooldown lap in retaliation for an incident early in the race, and his actions resulted in a fine announced on Wednesday.
According to the latest penalty report from NASCAR.com, Wallace was fined $50,000 for intentionally slamming into Bowman’s race car after the race was over. His actions were found to be in violation of Sections 4.4.B & D: NASCAR Member Code of Conduct in the NASCAR Rule Book.
The conflict stemmed from an incident on Lap 25. Bowman’s No. 48 Camaro contacted Wallace’s No. 23 Camry due to decreased visibility caused by rain during the event. Wallace spun after the wreck, losing valuable positions on track. He ultimately finished 13th in the race and is 17th in the points standings, 45 points out of the final Playoffs slot.
For his part, Bowman said he regretted the contact that sent Wallace for a spin.
“I’d be mad, too,” he said in a postrace interview. “I ruined his day. The restart was chaotic. I just made every wrong decision that I possibly could. I was fighting with my windshield wiper switch trying to get it working and I couldn’t get it working. I was focused on that, missed the corner.”
He added, “I locked all four tires and just slid right into him. I just messed up and absolutely ruined his day.”
It’s worth noting that Wallace is not the only driver to have been hit with a $50,000 fine after retaliating during a race this year. Carson Hocevar was fined just last week for a similar incident when he used his No. 77 Camaro to ram the No. 21 Ford Mustang Dark Horse of Harrison Burton during a caution period at Nashville.
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Comments
He’s a joke.
Wallace ain’t the brightest driver in the pack…
Suspend him for a race, dock his points as well as fine and pay damages for the other drivers car. If he has another incident like this again, pull his racing card & ban him from racing.
That is what’s great about motocross / supercross racing. Just great racing and no prima donna’s. The AMA doesn’t mess around!!
Bubbles Wallace, NASCAR POSTER BOY, has a real attitude problem.
DEI driver.
Why no points reduction?
Not the first time he has taken a swipe at Bauman. If things don’t go his way, it’s always somenone elsie’s fault! Dei, is correct. Too many other up and coming drivers would give it all, to be in his ride.
Another reason nascar is going down the toilet. Along with everything else unfortunately.
Wallace will just pull out his “black card” to get out of this. And to think, this is the guy NASCAR tried to elevate to the top shelf by having that big fake news story about the noose that was found in his garage. NASCAR you’re a big joke anymore.
Bubba Wallace what a POS