Christopher Bell said Bubba Wallace apologized for his retaliatory hit on Kyle Larson, whose car sputtered into Bell and took the Toyota driver out of Sunday’s race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Per Jenna Fryer of the Associated Press, Bell said Wallace spoke to him later that day.
“We actually flew home together on Sunday night and he did apologize Sunday, and then he addressed our entire group on Monday and the competition meeting,” Bell said Wednesday. “He just apologized for what went down and the fact that we got taken out is unfortunate circumstances.”
Wallace intentionally clipped Larson, leading to his vehicle spinning into traffic and striking Bell’s car. The accident ended Bell’s day and pushed him to last in the eight-driver playoff standings.
Bell drives for Joe Gibbs Racing. His teammate, Denny Hamlin, co-owns Wallace’s 23XI Racing. The two Toyota teams are allies.
On Tuesday, NASCAR suspended Wallace for the next Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. COO Steve O’Donnell condemned Wallace’s “dangerous act” that “put other competitors at risk.”
Wallace posted an apology Monday on Twitter. While he expressed regret toward Bell, Toyota, sponsors, and fans, he didn’t directly apologize to Larson.