Bubba Wallace speaks out about fighting on NASCAR track

From time to time, things get physical between drivers on and off the racetrack. Bubba Wallace has been a part of a couple scuffles during his NASCAR career, notably with Kyle Larson and Aric Almirola.

Wallace appeared on The Breakfast Club earlier this week and revealed why it sometimes gets physical between drivers. Wallace said it’s all about getting even after getting done wrong on the racetrack.

“You feel like you’re done wrong because I go back to the respect thing — you show up with respect and you command respect in return and sometimes, you feel like you’re shorted. You’re done wrong and for whatever reason, when I’m done wrong and I retaliate, it’s the world’s ending,” Wallace said. “All I’m doing and what I was grown up being taught is you just get even. I’m just getting even, like, we’re good. We can shake hands after the fact. We’re good now, but massive deal.”

At Las Vegas in 2022, Wallace crashed into Larson on Lap 94. He then got out of his car, approached Larson and shoved him. Wallace was suspended by NASCAR for one race. Fights are less commonplace now than before, but that particular incident is one of the more notable in recent years.

Bubba Wallace claims he needs to win for NASCAR to grow

Wallace has since become of the better drivers in the sport. He made the playoffs for the first time in 2023 and is off to a good start in 2025. Wallace has tallied back-to-back third place finishes at Homestead and Martinsville, respectively. He sits eighth in the points standings with 98 laps led through seven races.

Wallace has just two wins in his Cup Series career. He’s getting closer to adding a third. Ultimately, Wallace feels he needs to find Victory Lane more often for the sport to grow.

“I need to win,” Wallace said. “There you go. I think that’s the easiest way to go about it. I need to win. Golf didn’t change too much, but Tiger [Woods] was dominant and created a lot of buzz. I’ve only had two wins in my eight years being in Cup. To me, that’s unacceptable.

“The way that we’ve been performing this year, last two races finishing third, two spots away from doing just that. I’ll take full responsibility in helping that.”