“It’s hard to swallow” - Bubba Wallace’s spotter calls on NASCAR to bring back old rule after Harrison Burton’s Daytona win

Despite leading 16 laps during the race, Bubba Wallace finished in sixth place, while Harrison Burton won the Coke Zero Sugar 400 race at Daytona by leading just one lap. The victory catapulted the Wood Brothers driver directly into the playoffs. However, Wallace's spotter was less than thrilled with how things turned out and suggested NASCAR revisit the old playoff qualification rules.

Wallace, with 637 points and sitting at 13th in the driver standings, has yet to break into the top 16 for the playoffs. In contrast, Burton, with only 306 points and ranked 34th, has already secured a spot.

Wallace's spotter, Freddie Kraft, voiced his frustration on his Door Bumper Clear podcast, saying:

"He was 30 points behind Zane. Don't matter. It does not matter. Those aren't the rules anymore. [...] Harrison did nothing wrong, but it's hard to swallow when we are probably 80 points higher than we were at this point last year. And four guys behind us in the points-win race."

If a regular season winner had won the Coke Zero Sugar 400, Bubba Wallace’s chances of making the playoffs would have improved significantly. However, Harrison Burton’s victory has substantially reduced the #23's playoff prospects. Last year, Bubba Wallace secured his spot based on points.

According to the old rules, which prioritized consistency over individual wins, #23 would have been in the playoffs. Back in 2003, Matt Kenseth secured the championship with just a single win but racked up 25 top-10 finishes and led the championship standings for 33 races during the season, though he was often seen as having a low-key, even dull, persona at that time.

Kraft argued that returning to those rules would provide a fairer shot for drivers who demonstrate consistent performance throughout the season. He stated:

"I would actually like to see a top 25 rule. I feel like top 25 makes a lot of sense. [...] he's got to go out and perform these next handful races and get himself to this this plateau of 25th to 30th."

Check out Freddie Kraft's comments below:

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Bubba Wallace's spotter reels from Harrison Burton's surprise leap into the playoffs

Although Freddie Kraft didn't explicitly state his displeasure with Harrison Burton's unexpected playoff qualification from near the back of the field, his DBC podcast co-host Brett Griffin echoed Kraft's sentiments on X. He posted:

"Freddie is the first guy out because Harrison won. We all knew this was a wild card race. He’s heartbroken by the win as he should be. How he navigates that on DBC [Door Bumper Clear podcast] will be interesting. Emotions are still emotions."

With just one race left in the regular season, it'll be intriguing to see whether Wallace can grab a playoff spot like he did last year.