Bubba Wallace claims ‘bubble practice’ gives him a good shot at securing a Cup playoffs R-12 spot
Bubba Wallace going into Kansas as the defending race winner.
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Bubba Wallace and Tyler ReddicK (Via IMAGO)
23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace has pointed out that with the playoff eligibility bubble practice he had during the last races of the 2023 regular season he has a genuine shot at making it into the second round of playoffs. He produced a solid race on his playoff debut and finished a P7 finish after starting on P19 at Darlington.
Wallace marked history when he held on to his P16 positions in the championship table on the final race of the regular season at Daytona. He withstood the pressure put on him by Daniel Saurez, Ty Gibbs, and the Hendrick Motorsports duo of Alex Bowman and Chase Elliott. His solid finishes in the Road Course races were some of the best moments of his Cup career.
While talking about the fight that’s ahead of him in the Roud of 16 at Kansas this Sunday and Bristol next week, he pointed out that he has a shot at griding enough to make his way to the next round. His win in the same event last year during the playoff gives him extra confidence in securing a solid finish, if not a win.
“Sure, any bubble practice is good practice. So, you know I said it while we were fighting for a bubble in the regular season: we’re better than 16th. I said it when the playoffs started, we’re better than 16th. I think we have a really good shot,” Bubba Wallace told Fox Sports (H&T: Pro Talks).
“This first round is really suited for us. One down, two to go is what Freddie said after the race ended crossing the start-finish line last weekend. We just need to do the same thing we did at Darlington. I need to clean some things up for sure. But the way we executed in the second and third stages was really good and really positive,” Wallace added.
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Bubba Wallace has a positive attitude going into Kansas
Wallace is currently P13 playoff standing and is one point from the cut-off lines. Currently, the final R-12 eligibility position is held by his Toyota teammate, Christopher Bell. He was the second-best finishing TRD car at Darlington behind his teammate Tyler Reddick.
While talking about his Darlington race, Wallace pointed out that a top-10 was a big result for him, considering the race went out of hand at the start of the race. He added that he wanted to leave Kansas the same way he left DR, knowing they secured a finish they deserved.
“To walk away with a top-10 was big, especially after the day started. But I think if we just go out and run our own race this weekend, everything will take care of itself. If it’s meant to be, then we’ll move on. We have to make sure we don’t leave the race track Sunday night wishing that we would have done something different or knowing that there was something left out on the table,” Wallace said.
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Justin P Joy
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