REPORT: Dispute with Bubba Wallace led to internal suspension of Aric Almirola

According to a report by Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic, citing anonymous sources, an altercation between Aric Almirola and Bubba Wallace at a competitive meeting led to Joe Gibbs Racing removing Almirola from the driver’s seat of the No. 20 NASCAR Xfinity Series car at Charlotte Motor Speedway and suspending Almirola indefinitely.

TobyChristie.com has reached out to the team for comment on The Athletic’s report. The team stated that they are unable to comment at this time.

The two drivers have a history together, as they got into a heated argument on pit road during a weather red flag at the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway last season. During that altercation, Almirola ended up shoving Wallace in front of NASCAR security.

Bianchi’s report suggests that Almirola’s internal suspension will be lifted soon and that Almirola will return for the NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 20. The lifting of Almirola’s suspension in time for the Xfinity Series event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is consistent with a previous report from TobyChristie.com in which Joe Gibbs Racing officials denied persistent rumors that Almirola was released from the team last week.

The team confirmed in that report that Almirola’s next scheduled NASCAR Xfinity Series race for Joe Gibbs Racing would be at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

In five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts this season, Almirola has one win and three top-five finishes. The driver’s average finish is 10.2.

Almirola retired from full-time NASCAR Cup Series racing at the end of the 2023 season and took a part-time driving position to mentor the younger development drivers at Joe Gibbs Racing.