Bubba Wallace controversy explodes as fans suspect race manipulation in clash with Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Bubba Wallace found himself at the center of another controversy after his contact with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. during the Bristol night race on Saturday.

Wallace, who was running on worn tires, clipped Stenhouse in the middle of the third stage of the NASCAR Cup season's first elimination race at Bristol Motor Speedway. The collision sent Stenhouse hard into the wall and brought out the caution. This sparked heated reactions from fans, many of whom suspected Wallace deliberately caused the crash as he needed to improve his position.

Fans responded to YouTuber Eric Estepp's tweet, which read:

"Oop.. Bubba Wallace needed a caution and cleaned out Ricky Stenhouse to get it."

Fans were not shocked by the incident but were quick to accuse the 23XI Racing driver of intentional manipulation.

"Wouldn't be the first time he's done something on purpose to benefit himself," a fan commented.

TyDougher

@_TheNWP_

@EricEstepp17 Wouldn't be the first time he's done something on purpose to benefit himself

"Going to blame this one on him like you blamed Byron earlier or does he get a pass cause he’s in a Toyota?" another questioned.

"Race manipulation," another fan replied.

JMAC

@_JMAC_89

@bobpockrass Race manipulation

"You cannot tell me that was not on purpose to save his race," quipped another user on X.

However, a few defended Wallace, who had 50 points over the playoff cutline ahead of the final Round of 16 race.

"Ricky came down on him. You know this. Stop being stupid on purpose," a fan commented.

"He didn't need a caution. He would have gotten new tires and driven back to the top five in the cycle. He just had no tire left to stay low on the track," another wrote.

After Stenhouse Jr.'s No. 47 Chevy slammed the wall, the caution allowed Wallace to regroup and pit for fresh tires. However, it marked the second spin of the night for the Hyak Motorsports driver.

Wallace also shared an apology to Stenhouse Jr. over his radio while heading to pit road for service. He explained that his tires would not allow him to turn down.

Bubba Wallace just one point above playoff cutline heading to Round of 12

Bubba Wallace, who had two top-10 finishes in the first two races of the playoffs, ended up in 34th place at Bristol.

Wallace is now ranked eighth in the playoff standings, just one point above the elimination line. The Round of 12 starts at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, where he has only two top-10 finishes in seven starts. Kansas and the Charlotte Roval will host the following two races after the 1.058-mile oval.

Wallace won the 2022 Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway. However, he has had only one top-5 in the five races there since the win. His highest average finish (10.7) of all the Round of 12 tracks is at the Charlotte Roval.