Riley Herbst’s name was trending for all the wrong reasons after NASCAR’s historic inaugural Cup Series race in Mexico City.
The 23XI Racing rookie found himself in hot water after a dangerous move that nearly caused a catastrophic collision, leaving fans and racing personalities calling for his head on social media.
NASCAR Fans Unleash Fury Over Riley Herbst’s Reckless Rejoin
The incident happened on Lap 73 of the Viva Mexico 250 at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Herbst was battling for 13th place when he made contact with William Byron, sending his No. 35 Toyota spinning after exiting Turn 11. What came next had everyone’s blood boiling.
Instead of waiting for traffic to clear like any sensible driver would do, Herbst immediately tried to get back into the race by spinning his car around directly into the oncoming traffic. The move almost resulted in a disaster when Ricky Stenhouse Jr. had to slam on his brakes to avoid what could have been a devastating driver-side impact.
NASCAR journalist Jeff Gluck captured the chaos perfectly with his viral tweet: “Wow, almost a wild crash with Riley Herbst! He spun back around across traffic!!” The post exploded with thousands of views and angry responses from fans who couldn’t believe what they’d just witnessed.
Wow, almost a wild crash with Riley Herbst! He spun back around across traffic!!
— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) June 15, 2025
The reactions were brutal and immediate. One viewer’s response summed up everyone’s feelings: “That was DUMB.”
That was DUMB
— Brandon Lee (@_B_Lee_) June 15, 2025
One fan demanded action, posting “Dude should be served a drive through or something for that.” Another emphasized just how reckless and risky it was: “That was SO dangerous by Herbst, definitely needs to go to hauler after that one.”
Dude should be served a drive through or something for that
— Midwest Race Fan (@MidwestRaceFan) June 15, 2025
That was SO dangerous by Herbst, definitely needs to go to hauler after that one
— Real Deal Aneil (@realdealAneil) June 15, 2025
Another fan painted the scariest picture of what could have happened: “That driver side T-Bone would of been terrible.” A social media user added some dark humor, suggesting that “Ricky probably have to change his fire suit after that,” referring to how close Stenhouse came to getting wiped out.
That driver side T-Bone would of been terrible
— Chris Dixon (@gcdixon13) June 15, 2025
This wasn’t Herbst’s first rodeo with unsafe rejoins either. NASCAR fans on Reddit were quick to point out his pattern of dangerous behavior, with one user noting “Worth mentioning its not his first time.”
That’s some heads-up driving! 😮 pic.twitter.com/J3gQPbdf7y
— NASCAR Xfinity (@NASCAR_Xfinity) June 7, 2024
The incident happened during what should have been a breakthrough performance for Herbst. He’d qualified 15th and was running competitively in the top 15 when he threw it all away with one bone-headed decision. It was yet another missed opportunity in what’s been a disappointing rookie season, with Herbst mustering an average finish of just 25th place through 16 races.
