Joe Gibbs Racing issued an internal suspension to driver Aric Almirola following a physical altercation between him and Bubba Wallace in late May, according to a report by Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic. The alleged incident occurred during a weekly competition meeting involving drivers from both Joe Gibbs Racing and 23XI Racing, the team Wallace drives for.
Although the exact nature and cause of the dispute is unknown, The Athletic reported the team viewed Almirola as the instigator and subsequently indefinitely suspended him, pulling him from the seat of their No. 20 Toyota in the Xfinity Series. Almirola had been entered in that week's Xfinity Series race at Charlotte, but a mid-week driver change to Ty Gibbs was made with little fanfare. JGR representatives did not disclose a reason for the change at the time, saying it was a "team decision."
Almirola's suspension is reportedly set to end soon, and he is expected to return to the driver's seat of the No. 20 in July at Indianapolis.
A change from the original entry list for the Xfinity Series race: Aric Almirola was listed as the driver of the Joe Gibbs Racing #20, but it'll instead be driven by Ty Gibbs pic.twitter.com/0PT9gEQNdS
— Steven Taranto (@STaranto92) May 24, 2024
This isn't the first run-in between Almirola and Wallace, who were originally linked at Richard Petty Motorsports when Almirola was injured midway through the 2017 season and Wallace was tabbed as his substitute driver. Last year in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, the two were seen arguing on pit road during a rain delay over a battle for position, an argument culminating in Almirola shoving Wallace.
At the time, Almirola claimed he took issue with Wallace giving him the middle finger on-track and that the driver of the No. 23 had begun "mouthing off and cussing at me" when confronted. Wallace offered little insight on his perspective, other than calling Almirola two-faced.
After originally making his way to NASCAR's top level through Joe Gibbs Racing's system in the late 2000s, Almirola rejoined the team for 2024 after retiring from full-time Cup competition to continue racing on a part-time basis. Almirola has made five Xfinity starts this season, winning at Martinsville in April.
