Bubba Wallace admits that he doesn’t DESERVE to be in the 2023 Cup playoff considering the No:23 team’s current form
Bubba Wallace has never made it to the Cup playoffs in his career and 2023 is his best shot at doing it.
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Bubba Wallace (Credits: @23XIRacing/Twitter)
23XI Racing Toyota Camry driver Bubba Wallace has admitted that he and his team doesn’t deserve to secure a playoff spot right now, considering their poor execution. Wallace is still chasing his maiden Cup playoffs and is in desperate need of a race win. He hasn’t won a race since the playoff race last year at Kansas.
His teammate No:45 driver Tyler Reddick has already secured a spot in the playoff earlier in the season with an impressive win at COTA. Wallace was in the playoff bubble till last weekend, but he goes to Sunday’s race as the P17-positioned driver. He is behind the likes of Michael McDowell and Daniel Suarez.
He found himself in the position following the poor streak in the last couple of races that saw him finish outside the Top 20 on three different occasions. His recent best finish was a P15 at Nashville. The major reason behind his subpar results is the mistakes committed by himself and the crew during the races. This has made the driver admit that he doesn’t deserve a spot in the playoffs at the moment.
“We had a few mistakes that started off our weekend bad. I guess you could say that’s in the cards, so we don’t deserve to be in right now with the way we’re performing and executing… Mistakes like this at this point in the season; there’s no excuse for it. Whether it’s my fault on track or the crew’s fault in preparation. We need to be better as a team moving forward to even think about playoffs,” Wallace said at New Hampshire.
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Team boss Denny Hamlin gives his verdict on Bubba Wallace’s performance
23Xi owners Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan have big plans for Bubba Wallace. They expected the drivers to make it to the playoffs Round of 12. While Reddick is on the right path, Wallace isn’t. The return of pit-stop mistakes like last season has put more pressure on the team.
While talking about his driver’s struggles, Joe Gibbs Racing veteran Denny Hamlin pointed out that though the No:23 team is running well, they can do better. He added that the 23XI crew has sometimes let their drivers down, which needs to be addressed.
“They’re running OK. Certainly, would like to see a little more performance, a little more execution on the team’s part. The team has its fair share of growing that they need to do. The drivers, as long as they do their part, then it’s up for us to make sure the team executes. They let him down in some spots, for sure. We all have to get better,” Wallace said.
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Justin P Joy
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