Freddie Kraft reacts to Bubba Wallace early exit, being one wreck closer to unfortunate Pocono achievement

Bubba Wallace can’t keep his No. 23 Toyota off the wall at Pocono Raceway. As spotter Freddie Kraft pointed out on the “Door Bumper Clear” podcast, Wallace is a hit away in Turn 3 from completing the triangle trifecta.

Wallace had already found the Turn 1 wall at Pocono. In this past Sunday’s race, a brake rotor explosion punctured his right front tire and sent him into the Turn 2 wall on Lap 54. Will Wallace have an encounter with the Turn 3 wall next year?

“We started in the back because we had a starter issue in qualifying, similar to the 12 [Ryan Blaney], and we couldn’t go anywhere,” Kraft said. “We passed four or five guys, maybe, but we were 30th at the end of the first stage. You just couldn’t pass. It was really tough. The closer you get to the front, your car starts driving a little better. So, we got around 20th and it was getting a little better and you see a little light at the end of the tunnel, and then, obviously, we blow another brake rotor up and pound the fence and our day is over.

“Bubba — I’m proud of him because we only have one more turn to hit really hard there. We smashed the wall in [Turn] 1 as hard as you can hit it, we’ve hit the wall in 2 now as hard as you can hit it. If we just knock out 3 next year, we’ve covered every angle of the triangle. But it’s not a fun feeling when your guy is going down the backstretch and you hear, ‘Oh, f*ck,’ before you even get to the corner.”

Bubba Wallace on the struggle bus leaving Pocono

Obviously, Wallace would like to avoid that. He wanted to avoid the Turn 2 wall on Sunday, but there was nothing he could do. Pocono was a disaster from the jump, as his team had to replace the starter ahead of the race. Wallace, who had the second-fastest five-lap average in practice, couldn’t get his car started for qualifying.

Wallace is just 29 points in the clear of the playoff cutline. The six top 10s are encouraging, yes, but they’re accompanied by six DNFs.

“I was going to battle the No. 17 [Chris Buescher] into Turn 2, and by the time I was ready to touch the pedal, it just went to the floor,” Wallace said. “The brakes exploded. I hate it. We’ve had two or three good races in a row, then here we go with the bad luck again. But MJ [Michael Jordan] told me there’s no such thing as bad luck, so we create our own luck.

“I apologize to the racing gods – this weekend sucked aside from practice, but that pays nothing.”