LONG POND, PA – JULY 24: Bubba Wallace (#23 23XI Racing DoorDash Toyota) prior to the NASCAR Cup Series M&MS Fan Appreciation 400 on July 24, 2022 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
In an eventful race at Talladega last Sunday, Kyle Busch clinched his second victory of the season. While Rowdy admitted good fortune in the win, it would have ended differently had Bubba Wallace and Ryan Blaney not been involved in a last-lap wreck. Unfortunately, both drivers lost the chance to take the checkered but it was Wallace who had to swallow the bitter pill.
For a long time, NASCAR has kept amending its rules and regulations. One of the most tricky concepts to understand is the positioning of drivers post a caution. Luckily, a Hendrick Motorsports legend recently enlightened the listeners in this regard.
Hendrick Motorsports legend deep dives into the caution race using Bubba Wallace in Talladega as an example
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What happened with Blaney and Wallace was unlucky and could have been avoided. Wallace was keen on blocking the Team Penske driver, which eventually resulted in the wreck. While Blaney finished second, the 23XI Racing driver ended the race in the 28th position.
The question that arises is how the positioning works post-caution in such a case. Former Hendrick Motorsports crew chief Steve Letarte recently shed some light on this on his podcast “Dirty Mo Dough.” He said, “At the moment of caution, the field is frozen in its current position for everyone not involved in the accident.
“So if you are not involved in the accident at all for a second, that’s how Kyle Busch was the winner. He was the leader at the time of yellow. Then, those involved in the accident get moved into the field in which where they were in the accident, how they left the accident. It’s very complicated, it kind of gets blended together to be quite honest.”
Letarte added, “They [NASCAR[ are gonna say while you [drivers] were kind of in that accident and had to slow down a bit, so we are gonna put you blend you back in the field behind this guy or this guy, it’s kind of a blend.” He then explains how it was with Wallace with the caution at Talladega.
He said, “I think Bubba got even scored a lap down because he didn’t finish the lap so he was either the last car on the lead lap or the first car one that down. Normally, if you hit a couple of things, you lose a couple of spots.” It was unfortunate for the Alabama-born driver to have the race end in this fashion at his home track.
Furthermore, it was a golden opportunity lost for the Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin-owned team. Out of the two, Hamlin surely looked dejected with their star driver.
Denny Hamlin expresses his disappointment with Bubba Wallace’s decision-making in Talladega
To the surprise of many, Bubba Wallace took full responsibility for the incident. While it was a healthy reaction on his part, his boss Denny Hamlin looked dejected with the 29-year-old’s mistakes. He felt blocking Blaney multiple times was uncalled for.
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In fact, Hamlin discussed it on his Actions Detrimental podcast. The 3x Daytona 500 winner said, “I guarantee, if Bubba Wallace had to do it all over again, he would not have made the second or the third block. Wish we could go back in time.” Surely, there is disappointment in Hamlin’s words here.
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Without a doubt, Wallace can definitely learn his lessons from last Sunday. In fact, he still has a good chance to turn it around this campaign. The question is, can he? Let us know in the comments below.