Kevin Harvick rips ‘crappy’ narratives fueling Kyle Larson-Bubba Wallace fiasco
Kevin Harvick has shunned the 'crappy' narrative circling Bubba Wallace and Kyle Larson's Darlington disaster. The notions stemmed from the late race wreck between the Hendrick Motorsports and 23XI Racing drivers that sparked controversy about a potential race manipulation.
After an early wreck put him over 160 laps down, Larson wheeled his #5 Chevrolet to finish the race. Meanwhile, Wallace, who started the Goodyear 400 in fifth, was running a lap down, eyeing to overtake the HMS rival on Lap 290.
At the same time, Ryan Blaney and Tyler Reddick battled for the lead. However, as Reddick's #45 Toyota bounced off the Turn 2 wall, Larson 'embarrassingly' checked up even though Blaney and Reddick were quite far from his machine. As a result, Wallace wrecked into the #5, sending it for a spin down the backstretch before Larson succumbed to a DNF.
The move attracted backlash, accusing Wallace and Larson of race manipulation.
Nonetheless, according to Kevin Harvick's podcast's co-host Mamba Smith, many believed Larson slowed to help his teammate William Byron and Wallace to aid Reddick. Harvick, the 2014 Cup Series champion, explained that such a scenario was unlikely, considering the race was about to wrap up, shutting down the 'crappy' speculations.
"I think a lot of times people make up all this crap thinking that we're smarter than we are. We're not that smart. In that moment right there, you just want to get to the end of the race and it'd be over with. Bubba's a lap down and Kyle's a 160 down," Kevin Harvick said (16:09).
William Byron finished second in Darlington, while Tyler Reddick salvaged a fourth-place result.
Not only Kevin Harvick but NASCAR insider Jeff Gluck also believes Bubba Wallace wasn't at fault
Despite Kyle Larson's unwarranted move with three laps to go, it was speculated that since Bubba Wallace could've escaped through the high line, he wrecked the HMS driver on purpose to alter the outcome. The incident between the drivers sent the race into a four-lap overtime.
Like Kevin Harvick, NASCAR insider Jeff Gluck defended the 23XI Racing driver. He backed his verdict by explaining the in-car footage of Larson and Wallace and claiming that the wheelman of the #23 Toyota Camry made an 'honest mistake,' not a deliberate one.
“It was pretty obvious though, to me. There’s plenty of conspiracy theorists out there, but honestly, I don’t give any credence to this at all. I think it was a completely honest mistake, a coincidence. But it did ruin Blaney’s race, though, because a pit stop happens again. Denny Hamlin’s pit crew has been on it, and they win him the race, because he gets off pit road first," Gluck said via The Teardown.
The Darlington race's final wreck between Larson and Wallace destroyed Ryan Blaney's odds of a potential first victory of the season. The Team Penske driver jumped to the lead against Reddick but saw it relinquish before his eyes after the incident forced a caution.
While Kyle Larson's Cup Series rank has dropped by four spots, Bubba Wallace's standing remains undisturbed.