Last season, NASCAR got a lot of flak from the fans and some insiders about the way they were throwing the caution flag in races. Sometimes it was too late, sometimes it was unnecessary, and sometimes it never came. But to those who have been criticizing NASCAR for throwing the caution flag in the last two races, Freddie Kraft, the spotter of Bubba Wallace, has some things to say.
In the last two Cup races, two late cautions turned out to be the decisive factor as they altered the races on both occasions. It was Aric Almirola who brought it out in Vegas, without which Kyle Larson could’ve won the race, and it was Harrison Burton who brought it out in Phoenix, without which Kevin Harvick could’ve won.
This led to a few fans claiming those cautions shouldn’t have been thrown, something which Freddie Kraft doesn’t agree with.
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2 weeks in a row nascar throws an entertainment caution
— Suffering Buffalo Sports Fan (@eythnwarnes05) March 12, 2023
Spotter of Bubba Wallace disagrees with recent fan complaints about the caution flag
Speaking in a recent episode of the Door Bumper Clear podcast, Wallace’s spotter reacted to the complaints surrounding the caution brought out by Burton in Phoenix. “That’s a caution,” Kraft said.
“That guy is sideways, spinning across the racetrack and blowing tires out, that’s a caution. He drives away, and he throws debris everywhere on top of it,” he described. “It’s race-altering, but it’s a caution. And we complained about it last week, (Aric) Almirola was a caution.”
He added, “I know there’s low-hanging fruit there for NASCAR and we try to call it out when we see it, but the last two weeks were not an issue.”
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Freddie Kraft hopes NASCAR stay consistent with their yellow flag performances
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After Freddie Kraft made his point on the cautions in Vegas and Phoenix, he was asked to share his opinion on NASCAR’s performance so far this season in throwing the caution flag during races, something for which Kraft and his fellow spotters were quite critical last season.
“It’s a smaller sample size obviously, but the last two weeks, when they saw a guy sideways, sliding across the racetrack with smoke coming off his tires, they immediately throw the caution. There was no waiting to see what happen,” Kraft said.
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The spotter then addressed some fans complaining that by throwing the caution, NASCAR ruined “a good story” for Kevin Harvick to win the race considering he is in his final season.
“They shouldn’t be concerned about the storyline that day, that’s not an entertainment flag, that’s a caution flag,” Kraft emphasized. “This guy is spinning across the racetrack throwing s**t out there, throw the yellow.”
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He concluded on a hopeful note that NASCAR stays consistent with it.