NASCAR News: Former Driver Questions Bubba Wallace Penalty

Former NASCAR driver Rick Mast has raised questions about the substantial fine given to Bubba Wallace after an incident in the cool-down lap of the Chicago Street Race. Wallace, who was fined $50,000 for post-race contact with Alex Bowman, became a focal point of debate within the NASCAR community.

The controversy stems from an earlier clash during the race when Bowman spun Wallace, leading to Wallace’s frustrated retaliation. Mast, speaking on his podcast on Kenny Wallace’s YouTube channel, expressed his bewilderment at the penalty’s severity. Mast commented, as quoted by On3.com:

“I honestly, honestly Charlie I didn’t think it was that big a deal. A little bit surprised about the amount of the fine. I guess, I haven’t heard, and they’ll put the statement out, I haven’t heard the reasoning but I guess it was the severity of the hit, right?

“Because, hell I’ve had it done to me, and I’ve done it to other guys. The race is over and I’ll go up to them and I’ll rub them, run into them a little bit, body slam them a little bit.

“Just to let them know that I wasn’t appreciative of what they did to me and I’ve done it to other guys to some degree. But the severity of Bubba’s hit, right? How hard he turned into the car. I’m assuming that’s the reason they did that, right?”

However, it was the intensity of Wallace’s impact that might have drawn NASCAR’s stringent response. Mast continued:

“Probably trying to make a statement don’t be doing this. It may be, in racing we have what we call the goodwill bank. You have this bank and in your mind each driver has a bank in your mind and you have a goodwill part of that. So, this driver out here he’s got a lot in the goodwill bank with me, if he hits me, okay no big deal.

“Or that guy there has got nothing left in my bank and he touches me, he’s going to get his ass ripped back. Well, I think NASCAR plays that game a little bit too with the goodwill bank. What kind of trouble have you been in, what skirmishes have you caused, what’s your track record, what’s the record with doing things you shouldn’t be doing. That may have come into play a little bit with Bubba with it being more than just one isolated incident. I don’t know that, I don’t know what it is.”

However, despite the controversies, Mast still showed personal support for Wallace, suggesting that a change of scenery and perspective could benefit him.

“You know, I need to get to Bubba, man. Bubba needs some, you know I was a big Bubba Wallace fan when he first came in and it seems like Bubba gets himself in trouble, man. I don’t know how to say it, it’s like – and I’m sure with that team and their resources and everything that goes on and Bubba’s, you know, he publicly talks about his depression issues he goes through and working with the head shrinks and all that stuff. I’m just not 100% positive Bubba’s got to the right headband yet, right?

“It’s like, Bubba come to Rockbridge Baths [Virginia], spend five or six days up in the mountains with me like for a week. You know what I mean? And when you leave you might have a little bit different perspective of how you view the sport and how you view the world around the sport and how people view you and what’s really important and not important, you know? I don’t think mentally he’s there yet, and he’s short-fused, and that causes the immediate things you see is a short-fused and the temper. And hey, that’s fine, everybody has those deals but it keeps on getting Bubba in trouble, you know?”