Bubba Wallace has notoriously drawn the ire of fans since making his debut in the NASCAR Cup Series, and those "haters" continue to give him a hard time. Wallace most recently stirred up conversation after he was caught flipping the middle finger on TV during a post-race interview.
The controversial driver is fresh off a 17th-place finish at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday. Before the race, Wallace spoke with Claire B. Lang on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio and suggested there is a double standard among fans regarding the way they view some of his antics compared with some of the things other drivers do.
"People think that I love to stay in the headlines for different reasons, and I actually hate it," Wallace said. "The finger's become such a big thing when Bubba Wallace does it. But you have guys that get wrecked ... and they walk on the track and shoot one bird or shoot the double bird, and we laugh about it and move on. We tell them that they're No. 1. But when Bubba Wallace does it, we gotta shut the whole state down, shut the whole series down, kick him out, and suspend him."
He makes a fair point. If Wallace does the same things as other drivers, fans sit there and complain about it.
@BubbaWallace talks about his tendency for flipping the bird and why he plans to stop doing it. pic.twitter.com/Gtq1aR3t5w
— Kyle Dalton (@kdsportswriter) June 10, 2023
In his conversation with Lang, Wallace wasn't afraid to call out the double standard of those fans, claiming it's "complete B.S."
"So, on that side of things, it's complete B.S. But it is what it is," Wallace said. "It's been going on for years, and it sounds like I just invented something new. And we know how some of these people that are part of this sport hate when Bubba Wallace brings in something new."
For one thing, Wallace has never been suspended or disciplined for using his middle finger. Meanwhile, NASCAR's "Most Popular Driver," Chase Elliott, was suspended for right-hooking Denny Hamlin in the same fashion as Wallace did to Kyle Larson in 2022 — but Elliott didn't get the same kick-him-out-of-the-sport treatment on social media.
Haters are going to continue to hate on Wallace, though most of them could never do what he's able to do. The keyboard warriors might need to learn when to hold their tongues.
