Wallace's strong day at Phoenix negated by late speeding penalty

Bubba Wallace had another what-could-have-been day on Sunday afternoon.

Phoenix Raceway was the latest site as Wallace sped down pit road during his final pit stop. Wallace did so as the leader of the race with 27 laps to go.

“Yeah, unfortunate,” Wallace said, finishing 17th. “Our team is so good at finding all the gray areas to operate in and find our limits, and I think I exposed it a little bit too much around the corner. Corner pitting is really, really tough … just with the lack of visibility that you have. You’re trying not to run through too many boxes but also not give up too much time because you do speed up through those sections.

“So, you have to remember when you speed up, you can’t cut too much distance. When you cut too much distance and speed up, it adds to a speeding penalty.”

Wallace came off pit road in sixth place, but he was the first driver on four tires. Three drivers stayed out on older tires. The race winner, Wallace’s teammate Tyler Reddick, did so on two tires.

But none of it mattered, as Wallace was called for speeding. It took him out of the top 10 and destroyed any chance at a win or a solid result.

The penalty ended one of Wallace’s better races of the season. His 23XI Racing car had speed, and he led 52 laps, the most he’d led in a single race this season. Wallace also scored points in both stages, averaging 8.73, further showing how well the afternoon was unfolding.

“I hate it for our team,” he said. “This [No.] 23 group has worked so hard all year long and no results to show for it, or we come up just short. So, it’s frustrating. It’s super hard to be happy right now, but happy for the team, the [No.] 45 getting another win, and Toyota locking up the manufacturer championship.

“It’s been really fun driving Toyotas this year, but I just can’t seem to close the deal out. Three more to go.”

Wallace has been winless since Indianapolis in the summer of 2025.