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Freddie Kraft, the spotter for Bubba Wallace, publicly disputed SiriusXM NASCAR Radio host Danielle Trotta’s account of Wallace’s angry radio message at Talladega Superspeedway, saying Wallace was reacting to a near-miss on the track and not to being told to help teammate Tyler Reddick.
Trotta reported that 23XI Racing asked Wallace to push Reddick, who was short on fuel, to the end of Stage 1 of Sunday’s YellaWood 500. Reddick is still in the Chase. Wallace is not. Over the radio, Wallace said it was “not my problem.”
Kraft: ‘Facts matter. Silly me’
Kraft responded to Trotta on X. He said Wallace’s radio complaint, which included profanity and said the No. 45 team should have filled Reddick’s car with fuel, “was in response to something that happened on the track. Not for being told to push the 45 like you stated. Facts matter. Silly me.”
https://x.com/FreddieKraft/status/2115126149198258250
What Kraft says happened
On his Door Bumper Clear podcast, Kraft said he expected Reddick to move to the outside lane as the lead group came up on them. Instead, Kraft said, Reddick pulled down to pick up Austin Hill, who was behind the pack, and nearly caused contact with Wallace. Kraft said that near-miss, not the request to help Reddick, set Wallace off.
Kraft also said manufacturer teamwork is a normal part of superspeedway racing, with Chevrolets helping Chevrolets, Fords helping Fords and Toyotas helping Toyotas.
Trotta stands by her report
Trotta stood by her reporting. Replying to a fan on X, she said millions of viewers heard Wallace’s radio because NBC aired it during the broadcast, and she questioned why Kraft’s podcast co-hosts did not challenge his account.
How the race ended for 23XI
Reddick’s day ended in the 12-car crash on Lap 132, which started when Wallace bumped Ryan Blaney after Blaney and Joey Logano checked up at the front. Reddick finished 37th and is seventh in the Chase standings, 126 points behind Kyle Larson.
Teamwork became a bigger story at Talladega after Larson won with help from Chevrolet drivers all day. NASCAR said SMT data showed the Chevrolets around him on the last lap did not lift.
The Cup Series races next at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia, on Sunday, November 1, at 2 p.m. ET on NBC.
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