After a rather clean, caution-free race, the Southern 500 has finally come alive late in the final stage. Desperate to make the final dash, everyone on the racetrack went into elbow-out mode. But Josh Berry from Stewart Haas Racing perhaps pushed his luck a little too hard, as it resulted in a big one.

Moments after Chase Briscoe took the lead of the race after a chaotic restart, Berry in the No. 4 Ford Mustang tried to pull off a pass going three-wide. But his decision proved costly for himself and others around him. Sandwiched between Denny Hamlin and Ty Gibbs, Berry lost the grip of his race car and made contact with the No. 54 JGR Toyota. And next thing you know, multiple cars end up beating and banging each other, flagging out a caution.

The most notable car collected in the crash was the #23 of Bubba Wallace, who needed just three points to secure their playoff spot. Wallace’s car suffered significant damage to the front and rear ends. The only saving grace was that the driver was able to fire off the #23 Toyota Camry, but he won’t be able to compete for the playoff spot in such shape.

And it turned out to be true; unable to shake off the heavy damage and retain the track position, Wallace finished P16. Reflecting on the late race crash in the post-race interview, he said, “That caution with couple laps on tires we stayed out. I don’t know if that was the deciding factor but we just got so tight there and got back in the traffic. I got caught up in someone else’s mess.”

Wallace even threw a subtle jab at Josh Berry and the #4 team for their late-race tactics. “Hats off to the 4 team; I thought I did something yesterday. They one-upped us and showed up when it was game time. That’s pretty bad-ss so congrats to them.” Not only the 23XI Racing star, but even his ardent supporters quickly turned on the SHR driver.

Fans accuse Berry of shattering Bubba Wallace’s dreams

Although Berry was running up in the field late in the race, therefore he decided to throw the kitchen sink at his wild hopes of somehow making the final 16. Failing to pull off his ambitious moves, he wrecked out of the race and took Bubba Wallace and others with him. Reacting to this crash, a fan wrote, “@joshberry is the definition of a hack.”

One win and you’re in; that’s certainly been the case for drivers these past few weeks in the NASCAR Cup Series. But there was no way Berry could’ve gotten past both Ty Gibbs and Hamlin and then contested for a lead. Sharing a similar sentiment, this race fan added, “Josh Berry has no reason to be that aggressive right there. None what so ever. Wrecked Gibbs and Wallace for no reason whatsoever.”

NASCAR racing is about the underdogs going against the superstars of the sport. In doing so many times, drivers have to punch above their weight. However, this attempt by Berry was a complete failure, as he didn’t achieve his objective. Rather added misery to drivers who could have a genuine shot to do better. “Josh Berry punched above his weight…”

Now it’s hard to recall a Cup Series driver retiring right after a rookie year. But angered by Berry’s antics, a passionate race fan did want to see the sight of the SHR driver at the top level of NASCAR racing after his actions. “@joshberry RETIRE YOU B-M.”

Wallace was pitted against Kyle Busch, Chris Buescher, and Ross Chastain to make the final playoff spots. But a struggling SHR race team ruining the #23 team’s hopes was something no one expected. “imagine having your playoff chances ruined by josh berry.”

We’ve seen a fair few staunch critics of Bubba Wallace over the years online on social media platforms. But, it looks like Josh Berry will always be reminded of his muck-up that proved detrimental to other drivers and their chances to make the playoffs. “This is now a Josh Berry hate account. What a f–king dumb m-ron.”

What are your thoughts on the late-race carnage caused by Berry, and did it hamper Wallace and the #23 team’s chances of a playoff spot?