While kinda funny, it’s also a violation of the NASCAR rule book
Error cards can raise the value of collectors items. How about an error car?
View photos of Bubba Wallace’s upside down car below.
On Sunday, 23XI Racing and driver Bubba Wallace unloaded with an error car. The roof number was mounted in reverse of every car in the field.
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Room numbers are suppose to face the infield. This rule traces back to the days of paper and pencil scoring, when laps were counted manually by someone standing in the infield.
Side note: Ironically, the power went out in the Truck race at Gateway over the weekend. That power outage included the scoring tower. When they went back green, manual scoring was in place. That’s possibly the first time since digital scoring has existed.
In Michigan, Bubba Wallace’s roof numbers faced the grandstands. The opposite of all his competitors.
It’s an obvious error when looking at the car from above. An error more noticeable to the fans than the pre-race tech officials on the ground.
When they dropped the green flag on Sunday, that was the first time cars touched the track. The error became clear but it was too late to fix it.
Related: Bubba Wallace sets goals with 23XI Racing for the 2021 NASCAR season
NASCAR Number Placement Rules
NASCAR Rule 7.6.e: Roof numbers must read from the driver’s side, not the passenger’s side.
Additionally, “32 inches tall, reading from driver’s side excluding borders and silhouettes. Two digit numbers must be even across top and bottom.”
Any penalties/fines for the violation would be announced on Tuesday or Wednesday.
During the race, the team’s social media account acknowledged the error. They tweeted in response to a photo of the roof, “ʇsɐɟ oƃ ןןıʇs ɹɐɔ”
While we’re on the subject, why don’t the numbers face the grandstands? Most TV cameras are setup from the outside wall and the fans in the stands might appreciate not being forced to read backwards numbers.
Related: Michigan race results from August 22, 2021 (NASCAR Cup Series)
Bubba Wallace
Backwards Roof Number
Links
23XI Racing | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota Racing | Bubba Wallace |
