FLASHBACK: Bubba Wallace Was Fined $15,000 in 2016 for Calling Officials ‘Muppets’

The official story is out, there was no hate crime after all when Bubba Wallace and NASCAR implied that a ‘noose’ like rope hanging from his Talledaga car stall was there to intimidate Wallace after he successfully pushed to have Confederate flags banned from NASCAR. Despite Wallace’s doubling down efforts, most right-minded people now know that there was nothing nefarious.

Wallace isn’t new to controversy either. In 2016, he tweeted: “Got the muppets up there officiating tonight! Never know how to react under pressure… Whatta joke” and that tweet is still on his feed to this day:

Got the muppets up there officiating tonight! Never know how to react under pressure… Whatta joke

— Bubba Wallace (@BubbaWallace) July 2, 2016

Fox Sports reported:

Apparently, NASCAR does not take kindly to having its race officials called “muppets” on social media.

That obviously is the reason NASCAR fined Darrell “Bubba” Wallace $15,000 on Wednesday as a behavioral penalty, cited under Sections 12.1; 12.8 a; 12.8.1 b of the NASCAR Rule Book. Those sections pertain to disciplinary action and NASCAR member conduct.

Wallace criticized NASCAR officials on social media following the last Friday night’s Subway Firecracker 250 XFINITY Series race at Daytona International Speedway, calling them “muppets” and saying the way they handled the controversial ending of the race was “a joke.”

It’s unclear as to what will happen next with Bubba’s future as well as NASCAR, as the racial controversy has thrown Americans and NASCAR fans alike in a tizzy while the nation deals with broader issues of racial division, protests, riots, and looting.