The incident was allegedly in retaliation for Bowman spinning Wallace’s car on a wet track into a wall earlier in the day during a brief period of lack of attention. Bowman said he understood Wallace’s anger and asked NASCAR officials that he not be fined for the door-slamming.
However, NASCAR had a different opinion.
Bowman, in his seventh full season with Hendrick Motorsports, has eight career NASCAR Cup Series victories, with the latest at the Chicago Street Course, which snapped an 80-race winless skid. He also put himself in a position to earn a spot to make this year’s playoffs.
Bowman is in 11th place in the NASCAR standings, with 553 points, but celebration of the latest victory was tempered by the issue of Wallace.
In addition, NASCAR announced plans to speak with Chase Elliott for his contact with Daniel Suarez after Sunday’s race.
Wallace finished 13th in the Chicago race and currently sits in 15th place in the NASCAR standings, with 476 points, and is battling Chris Buescher (521 points), for one of the final wild card spots in the playoffs.
He is coming off his best finish in 2023 when he reached the Cup Series Playoffs for the first time, advancing to the Round of 12 and placing a career-high 10th in points.
Wallace became the second black driver to win in the Cup Series with his victory at Talladega Superspeedway in the 2021 fall race. He earned his second victory at Kansas Speedway in 2022.
Wallace has six total Craftsman Truck Series wins, becoming the first African American since Hall of Famer Wendell Scott to win a NASCAR race when he went to Victory Lane at Martinsville in 2013.
Wallace did not comment on the fine.
Kyle Larson, who wrecked on the wet surface in Turn 6 in Chicago, is the NASCAR standings leader, with 671 points, followed by Chase Elliott (660) and Tyler Reddick (648).
The Cup Series continues its regular season at Pocono Raceway on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. EST.