Ahead of the race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Joe Gibbs Racing and 23XI Racing decided to take a measure to fix the dire pit crew situation of Bubba Wallace. What they ended up doing was giving some members from Christopher Bell’s crew to that of Wallace’s.
And it worked for the #23 driver. He didn’t face a lot of problems on the pit road during the race.
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However, the same couldn’t be said about Bell.
Things go from bad to worse for the No. 20. pic.twitter.com/RLAKuckhl6
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 10, 2022
typical bubba wallace pit crew
— 𝑴ari🏄🏾 (@Mari5O4___) July 10, 2022
bUt ItS bUbBaS fAuLt
— Tony Panaway (@theWoodenWizard) July 10, 2022
Doc Hudson is rolling in his grave
— Terry Altherr (@AltherrTerry) July 11, 2022
That was on the jackman
— Delaney (@Laney2015) July 11, 2022
Need to switch them f****** back give him back his pit crew members
— Mike Guiden (@mykeg1974) July 10, 2022
Fire that fucking crew. Sorry but they just don’t belong in the cup level. Absolutely atrocious. Garbage.
— Ms_Phibblez (@Ms_Phibblez_) July 10, 2022
As you can see, this led to many NASCAR fans stamping their authority on the fact that the problem wasn’t with Bubba Wallace as a driver throughout the season, but with his pit crew.
And Bell’s mishap only solidified this notion further.
Bubba Wallace and Christopher Bell on their respective pit crew situations
In an interview, speaking about his pit crew import from JGR, Bubba Wallace described how they are trying to improve on all aspects as a race team.
“[The changes are] out of my control, so I look at the vision we have as a team. We’re all trying to push the needle to be better and if this is a step in that direction, then I’m all for it,” he said.
On the other hand, Christopher Bell felt that taking away his crew meant that the problem wasn’t being fixed as many would believe.
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“I don’t wanna throw anybody under the bus, but it hasn’t been working what we’ve had,” Bell said. “Anybody that has paid attention to the 20 car this year would understand that the 20 car has not been amazing on pit road either.”
WATCH THIS STORY: NASCAR Community Alerts Dale Earnhardt Jr on “Missed Opportunity” Thanks to Bubba Wallace
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Bell emphasized that both he and Wallace have had their pit road struggles this season.
“Pit-road mishaps cost both of us a lot of potential good finishes,” he added.