LEBANON, Tenn. — Bubba Wallace did not divulge details when asked Saturday about a physical altercation between himself and Aric Almirola that occurred last month, though he did indicate that an incident did indeed happen that led to Joe Gibbs Racing suspending Almirola, as first reported by The Athletic earlier this week.
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“They don’t want to get into many details; keep some people’s images good,” Wallace said at Nashville Superspeedway. “I think I’ve said enough in Charlotte last year, so all in all, life is good for me. That s— happened over a month ago and a lot of good’s come my way and that’s what I’m focused on.”
Multiple industry sources briefed on the matter told The Athletic that Almirola was the instigator in the physical altercation that transpired in a competition meeting between the drivers of JGR and 23XI Racing during the week leading into the NASCAR race weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Despite driving for separate teams, both drivers were in the meeting as their respective teams are supported by Toyota and share a close technical alliance. Wallace drives for 23XI in Cup, while Almirola drives for JGR in the Xfinity Series.
The exact reason for the altercation is not known, but Almirola being viewed as the instigator prompted JGR to indefinitely suspend him. Almirola was set to drive in the May 25 Xfinity race at Charlotte, but after the altercation, JGR removed him from the car and replaced him with Ty Gibbs.
Team owner Joe Gibbs told The Athletic after the Xfinity race it was a “team decision” to replace Almirola. Denny Hamlin, who drives for JGR and co-owns 23XI Racing, also didn’t offer specifics when asked Saturday.
“I don’t really have a comment on it because I wasn’t there at the time, so I don’t know what all transpired,” Hamlin said. “It was all hearsay from my standpoint. At 23XI, we let Joe Gibbs Racing handle it and they did what they saw fit. So again, I don’t know all the details. I didn’t want to get too much into the personal business and still don’t.”
Almirola’s suspension is due to end soon and he is expected to return to the team for the July 20 Xfinity race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, according to sources briefed on the team’s plans.
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The incident between Almirola and Wallace last month was not the first between them. Last year, the two had a disagreement during the Cup race at Charlotte that saw Almirola shove Wallace on pit road during a red flag stoppage for inclement weather.
“When you walk around with two faces, that’s what you get,” Wallace later said after that race.
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(Photo: James Gilbert / Getty Images)
