Bubba Wallace Neatly Uses Kyle Larson’s Frustrations as NASCAR Backs Down from Sarcastic Dig

What’s the point of having wet-weather tires if NASCAR won’t use them? That’s exactly what many fans were thinking when a red flag stopped the action at New Hampshire Motor Speedway due to bad weather. However, according to the Senior Vice President of Competition at NASCAR, Elton Sawyer, wet racing at NHMS was “very successful.”

NASCAR waited out a nearly two-hour, 15-minute rain delay in the final stage Sunday and mandated teams run the final 77 competitive laps on wet weather tires. Twice under caution, NASCAR allowed teams to put on new sets of wets with non-competitive pit stops but never felt the track dried enough to allow teams to return to slick tires.

According to Elton Sawyer, “If you go back and look at the reason we came up with this and we started working through it with our teams and the folks at the R&D Center, it was to do exactly what we did yesterday and what we did today with the Cup race…So yes, very successful.” He further emphasized, “Kudos to Goodyear. This was (NASCAR Chairman) Jim France’s vision of what wet weather tires could do. We ran 301-plus laps today. So, with the overtime, our fans got the whole ticket and they got to see some great exciting racing.”

As Christopher Bell outlasted the rain, darkness, repeated cautions, and the rest of the field to win, the drivers were forced onto wet tires for the last 80 or so laps that saw several spin-outs and wrecks due to tricky conditions. Despite Sawyer’s claims, tempers flared, especially between Kyle Larson and his spotter, Tyler Monn, and fans were itching for the race to resume, even with the tricky conditions at the 1.058-mile oval.

Before the red flag, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson made contact during the final stage of USA TODAY 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The incident prompted Larson to take a shot at his team spotter, Tyler Monn, of all people. Speaking on the radio, when Tyler Monn said, “He (Denny Hamlin) runs you like that every time, you know why because you let it happen.” Larson got furious and asked his spotter to “Shut the f*** up”, following an uncomfortable silence on the team radio.

Bubba Wallace used Kyle Larson’s reaction to his team spotter to have some lighthearted banter with NASCAR fans, who were insisting on wet weather tires being used at NHMS. He took to X to have some fun with fans who were criticizing NASCAR for not using wet weather tires. He wrote, “Everyone complaining about rain tires” followed by “NASCAR”, with a video of Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson. The tweet implies that NASCAR’s reaction would be the same as what Kyle Larson told his team spotter, especially after finally agreeing to use wet weather tires and resuming the race.

At the NHMS, it took a while for NASCAR to finally agree to resume the race by letting drivers use wet-weather tires. Racing typically doesn’t happen on oval tracks if there’s rain and spray, as cars don’t have wipers or flaps. Moreover, visibility issues can cause some serious safety issues, with New Hampshire Motor Speedway having no lights to race under. This didn’t stop fans from enjoying Bubba Wallace’s tweet, despite yet another race being delayed due to bad weather this season.

Fans react to Bubba Wallace’s tweet

Amidst the frustration due to weather conditions at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the race contended with severe weather all weekend, with qualifying canceled on Saturday. Bubba Wallace’s tweet gave fans a hearty laugh.

The final 77 laps of the race at NHMS were run on wet weather tires—the longest stint since NASCAR implemented their use on some oval tracks. Writing on X, one fan said, “LMFAOOOOOOOOOOO BUBBA”

While the runner-up, Chase Briscoe at NHMS, didn’t really crib about the tires and said, “The rain saved us for sure. We were terrible in the dry,” The Athletic journalist Jeff Gluck was quick to reply to Wallace’s post. He wrote, “No you didn’t 😂”

Others were surprised to see the 30-year-old having a funny side, saying, “😆😆😆 I didn’t know you were hilarious!!!”

Despite NASCAR having prepared for rain all week, they dried some of the 1.058-mile track and then put wet-weather tires on the cars. After the second caution, teams were allowed to change to another set of wet-weather rubber in a non-competitive pit stop, but it still didn’t go down well with some fans. Frustrated at the backlash NASCAR was facing, one fan wrote, “Wish they would just do away with rain tires everybody always bi***ing about it”.

With no wins this season and currently ranked 14th in the NASCAR Cup Series standings, one fan urged Bubba Wallace to focus on the race and get the result. The fan wrote on X, “Shouldn’t you be in car? Go win this bro.”

Despite having a strong run and earning points for many drivers, a few hit a snag and wrecked. However, for Bubba Wallace, who finished P34 at NHMS, do you think Bubba Wallace will win a race in the NASCAR Cup Series this season? Let us know in the comments!