NASCAR Faces Fan Backlash for Penalizing Bubba Wallace but Not William Byron on Same Violation

Bubba Wallace drives for 23XI Racing, a two-car race team that is the "new kid on the block" in its fourth Cup Series season, which also recently joined Front Row Motorsports in filing an antitrust lawsuit against NASCAR. William Byron drives for Hendrick Motorsports, a four-car team that signed the recent charter agreement and is the most successful organization in the sport's history with the most victories, championships, and championship-winning drivers and crew chiefs.

With that as the backdrop, it's easy to see why there were many unhappy fans that accused NASCAR of playing favorites during the first stage at the Charlotte Roval, after officials levied a penalty on Bubba Wallace for shortcutting the course in the front stretch chicane but didn't issue the same punishment to William Byron, who based on the video evidence, committed the same violation a split second later.

In the Drivers Meeting before the Cup race, all drivers watched the video that included the following rule: "You will be judged as missing or shortcutting any turn previously described when all four tires are on the non-track side of the red and white rumble strips (blue area) that define the apex of the turns."

Going into a right turn on that chicane, the left-side tires on the No. 23 car did not maintain contact with the red-and-white curbing and drove fully into the blue curbing, which is considered off the racing surface and deemed a penalty. Wallace disagreed with the call on his radio calling it "f****** bulls***" moments after it happened.

Interestingly, the 23XI Racing driver had no idea that the No. 24 just two cars behind had done the same thing a split second later and was not flagged for any sort of violation.

Unsurprisingly, fans took to social media and didn't hold back in criticizing the sanctioning body's decision/indecision. Many responded to a post on X by Fox's Bob Pockrass on Wallace's reaction over the radio. One fan's reply showed side-by-side photos of the Nos. 23 and 24 committing the same infraction at the same spot and asked why one was penalized and the other wasn't.

"One is a Hendrick driver," one fan wrote on X. "The other is a driver for a team with a lawsuit pending."

"I was just about to ask the same thing," someone else replied. "They showed bubba cutting it, but when they continue the replay, Byron goes and does it too (crying laughing emojis)."

"Sat here screaming about it live at the track," wrote another fan.

Watching at home on television or live at the track, it was that obvious of a missed call.

Last week on his podcast Kevin Harvick called out NASCAR for being consistently inconsistent following the towing policy-damaged vehicle policy debacle at Talladega.

His words apply here.

Related: Dale Earnhardt Jr. Joins in Protest Against Proposed Change in NASCAR TV Coverage