The start of Stage 2 ultimately proved to be a disaster for Bubba Wallace after earning points on the opening stage of the Chicago Street Race. This NASCAR race is going to be wet and wild, folks. Bubba Wallace held onto the top 10 in Stage 1. As he exited the pits, he was hit from behind by his teammate Tyler Reddick. This was due to a bottleneck and pile-up exiting pit road as the other cars took up positions after failing to pit. When the racing started, things got even worse. Bubba finally spun and hit the wall, courtesy of car 48, Alex Bowman. He wasn’t very happy after that. It hasn’t been an easy season for Bubba Wallace. This season, car 23 has gotten into trouble with the others several times and that has cost him a lot of points. There are now about 50 points left before the cut line and Wallace needs to win now if he wants to make the playoffs.
Chicago wasn’t great for Wallace last year. However, he established a good rhythm from the start. Qualified in the top 10. So now he has to hope he can get the damaged Toyota back on track for a good finish. Although Wallace is struggling, he is not alone. When the weather is this bad, there are casualties all over the camp.
Bubba Wallace wrecks, SVG follows after
Well… there will be no title defense in 2023. At the start of Stage 2, SVG was hit by Chase Briscoe and slammed into the outside wall exiting Turn 6. After winning the first stage convincingly, the defending champion is finished. van Gisbergen, the race favorite, was involved in the caution period on lap 25 after Chase Briscoe slid into the tire wall. Briscoe clipped the rear of van Gisbergen’s No. 16 Chevrolet, which then hit the wall hard. What does this mean for the rest of the day? It means drivers like Christopher Bell, Ty Gibbs and Christopher Bell have a great opportunity. While defeating SVG would be a tall order, the race is now on.
Due to weather conditions, the race is currently delayed due to poor visibility, but NASCAR hopes to resume. The race must be completed by 8:20 p.m. CST or 9:20 p.m. EST. Then the white flag is raised and the race ends in one lap.
