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Video reveals what sparked post-race exchange between Chase Elliott, Daniel Suarez in Chicago

Stephen Samraby:Steve Samra•07/08/24•

SamraSource

Chase Elliott, Daniel Suarez
© Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

While plenty has been made about the beef between Alex Bowman and Bubba Wallace following the former’s victory in the Chicago Street Race, another spat took place in the Windy City on Sunday.

Chase Elliott and Daniel Suárez got into it during the final laps of the Grant Park 165, and the former NASCAR Cup Series champion decided to show his displeasure with the No. 99. It’s evident the duo didn’t exactly agree on the incident either, as they got into it after the race, as well.

Check out the video of the battle between the two Chevrolet wheelmen below. You can tell there was quite a bit of contact between Elliott and Suarez, via Daniel Hemric’s on-board camera.

In the end, Elliott was frustrated with his P21 finish, while Suarez secured a P11 on the afternoon. Will this rivalry continue, or will it simply be chalked up to the rigors of street racing? That fact remains to be seen.

Nevertheless, the duo did have a conversation on pit road. Elliott was visibly annoyed as Suarez made his case. Still, it might not benefit either drive to continue this rivalry moving forward into the playoffs, with both already locked into the dance.

One thing is for sure, tempers flare when NASCAR heads to a street course. It was a memorable afternoon in Chicago, and we’ll see if there’s any hard, lingering feelings over the next couple of weeks stemming from the event.

Alex Bowman doesn’t want NASCAR to penalize Bubba Wallace for Chicago incident: ‘It was plenty deserved’

Meanwhile, Bubba Wallace intentionally slammed into winner Alex Bowman during a cool-down lap, but Bowman was apologetic after the incident.

In fact, he’s even advocating that NASCAR not punish Wallace for dooring him. According to Jeff Gluck of The Athletic, Bowman was firm on that point late Sunday evening, not wanting Wallace to face disciplinary measures for the post-race actions.

“He barely hit me, everything was fine and it was plenty deserved,” Bowman said.

The winning driver also explained that he had already taken some steps to try to smooth things over with Bubba Wallace after earlier spinning him out in during Stage 1. That was what Wallace was almost certainly heated about after the race.

“I’d be mad, too. I ruined his day,” Bowman said. “I just messed up. I’ve been embarrassed about it since it happened. I tried to call him during the rain delay and I shot him a text.”

As for his advocacy, Bowman will have to wait to see if NASCAR takes heed. Bubba Wallace will also be waiting, likely on pins and needles.

On3’s Thomas Goldkamp contributed to this article.