NASCAR finally returned to North Wilkesboro Speedway last night for the first time since 1996.
The Cup Series held its annual All-Star Race at the historic track, in what was a huge moment for the sport returning to its roots and one of the original tracks on the NASCAR circuit.
But after the race it seems like people were only talking about one thing: Who was Bubba Wallace flipping off?
During his post-race interview on pit road after finishing 2nd to Kyle Larson, Wallace was seen looking off to the side and flipping the bird while adjusting his fire suit, leaving fans to wonder just who the gesture was directed towards.
Here’s Bubba Wallace flipping off the national tv camera. No big deal. https://t.co/h0D42AouWt pic.twitter.com/kgnbzabC8C
— oneroundofwedge (@oneroundofwedge) May 22, 2023
Some thought that Bubba might have been flipping off the crowd that had booed him during driver introductions.
.@bubbawallace’s response to the boos aimed at him during his #AllStarRace intro.#NASCAR pic.twitter.com/fibQq11N5P
— Daniel McFadin (@danielmcfadin) May 21, 2023
And others thought the gesture might have been towards the winner Kyle Larson, who Bubba has had problems with in the past, notably during a race last season that saw Bubba intentionally wreck Larson and then try to fight him in the grass during the race, earning Bubba a one-race suspension.
But it turns out the real explanation was a lot more innocent: He was just joking around with a friend.
According to Bob Pockrass, Wallace was flipping the bird towards a friend who was walking by on pit road. And while it was unfortunate that the inappropriate gesture was caught on camera, NASCAR will not penalize Bubba for the incident.
Bubba Wallace won't be penalized for flipping the bird on pit road after the race. It is NASCAR's understanding he was gesturing to a friend and while inappropriate, it wasn't done malicious.
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) May 22, 2023
Unfortunately the “controversy” (if you can even call it that) wasn’t the only non-racing related story involving Bubba last night.
After the race was over, fans who were listening in on Bubba’s team radio communications heard something odd come across at the end of the race.
Apparently some fans were able to get on to the radio frequency used by Bubba’s team to communicate with each other during the race. And they had some less-than-nice words for the driver:
“Go back to where you came from you asshole.”
“You suck and you’re not wanted in NASCAR.”
Racist assholes. https://t.co/jzYPbwQhRZ pic.twitter.com/gJIyZqYO3j
— Derek Gobble (@derekgobble_) May 22, 2023
It was reported after the race that NASCAR security is investigating the incident, which reportedly occurred after Bubba had already unhooked his radio, so he wasn’t able to hear the comments as they happened:
#NASCAR security is investigating a derogatory comments directed toward @BubbaWallace on his scanner immediately after the race. According to @23XIRacing he did not hear them at the time
— Jim Utter (@jim_utter) May 22, 2023
