Bubba Wallace’s spotter and Kyle Larson trade blame following multi-car crash at Daytona

NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 - Source: Getty
Bubba Wallace spotter gave his verdict on the multi-car wreck at Daytona - Source: Getty

23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace and Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson triggered a multi-car wreck on the track during the Coke Zero Sugar 400 held on Saturday, August 23, 2025, at Daytona International Speedway. However, there are two sides to this story, with Larson and Wallace's spotter sharing their own versions with the fans.

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Following the bad weather conditions, the governing body skipped the qualifying session for the 250-mile race. Instead, NASCAR opted for a metric-based system, and Wallace qualified for the main event in P22 with a score of 22.60, while Larson had a score of 5.40, starting the race from third place.

Despite a slow start, Bubba Wallace made progress in stage one. On lap 28, Wallace was running three wide for a fourth-place finish with Joey Logano and Kyle Busch. But on turn four, a bump from the HMS driver sent him down and made contact with Loagno, which sent the three cars spinning on the track, collecting nine other cars.

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Reflecting on the massive wreck, Kyle Larson called out the 23XI Racing driver and stated (via Jeff Gluck on X):

"I don't know why Bubba was crowding him so much."

Following that, Bubba Wallace's spotter, Freddie Kraft, criticized the #5 Chevy Camaro ZL1 driver for bumping out Wallace and stated (via X):

"5 just tried to f*cking force middle there"
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The #23 Toyota Camry XSE driver's day resulted in a DNF and wrapped up the Coke Zero Sugar 400 in P37. Meanwhile, Kyle Larson finished the 160-lap race in sixth place, earning 41 points.


23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace got candid about feeling pressured by his teammate Tyler Reddick's performance this season

In April 2025, NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace was featured in an interview with former Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick on his Happy Hour podcast on YouTube. During the interaction, Wallace opened up about feeling under pressure from his teammate, Tyler Reddick's performance this season.

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Reflecting on the same, the 31-year-old professional race car driver told the former Stewart-Haas Racing driver:

"Seeing the success of the 45, not from a jealousy standpoint, but it's like, 'I have the same stuff,' and I feel like I'm just as competitive as Tyler. I put all that weight on me, that pressure on me. So, I'm back in the gym, and nobody's telling me, 'Hey, you need to work out to run better; you need to be in more meetings to understand better.' I took that upon myself as, like, "I'm doing just enough to get by, and that's not okay." [05:20 onwards]
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Bubba Wallace ranks ninth in the Cup Series points table with eight playoff points. On the other hand, his teammate, Tyler Reddick, fell seven spots on the table and ranks 14th with six playoff points after the Coke Zero Sugar 400 race at Daytona International Speedway. Initially, Reddick entered the race with a 75-point lead over Wallace.

Additionally, both drivers have secured their spots in the 2025 Cup Series playoffs. The first race of the playoffs, the round of 16, the Cook Out Southern 500, is scheduled at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, August 31, 2025.

Get the latest NASCAR All-Star race news, Xfinity Series updates, breaking news, rumors, and today’s top stories with the latest news on NASCAR.

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Edited by Anisha Chatterjee
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