2023 is Bubba Wallace’s Best Season Till Date, and Here’s Why

Bubba Wallace has been around in the NASCAR Cup Series arena for a while now. He first entered the scene in 2012, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Xfinity Series. A year later, he split driving duties between the Truck and Xfinity Series before his big break into the Cup Series. Since then, he has gone from strength to strength and even managed to snatch a few wins. Of course, the 30-year-old has not won a title yet, but he has been impressive.

In his early days in the Cup Series, he was recruited by the Richard Petty Motorsports team for the 2017 season. Admittedly, he only competed in four races, sharing driving duties with Aric Almirola, Regan Smith, and Billy Johnson. 2018 happened to be his full-time debut, and he started it off with a bang. As a matter of fact, he snatched 2nd place during the Daytona 500, just losing out to Austin Dillon. With two more Top 10s, he ended the year in 28th place.

Bubba Wallace had a less-than-stellar start to his Cup Series career

Over the next two seasons with RPM, he was relatively average and often finished in the midfield. On the bright side, he did have the odd Top 5 and Top 10 finishes for 2019 and 2020. Then for the 2021 campaign, the newly established 23XI Racing came knocking, and Wallace jumped at the opportunity. Partly because his good friend Denny Hamlin is the team owner, and also partly because NBA legend Michael Jordan is the co-owner.

That inaugural season with 23XI Racing started off relatively slowly. However, his results slowly picked up, until his maiden Cup Series win at the Talladega Superspeedway. To make matters even better, this was on home soil at Alabama, though some would argue that he lucked out with the win. This was because the race was called off due to bad weather, and he just so happened to be leading at the time. Who knows, maybe without the rain, he could have still won or finished in a relatively high position.

His Cup Series form has hit an upswing since then

Since that race, Wallace gained a massive boost in confidence, and in the following year, his form improved. It started with yet another second-place finish at the 2022 Daytona 500, losing out to Austin Cindric. During the same season, he went and snatched a second Cup Series win at the Kansas Speedway. What should shut up his critics is the fact that he did not need Mother Nature’s intervention to win.

Admittedly, both of those wins came at a time when the Playoff drivers were already confirmed and he missed out. Coming to the 2023 season, Wallace and new teammate Tyler Reddick really hit the ground running. Although he has yet to win a race this season, the #23 driver has been in fine form, with consistent runs. In fact, he recorded a hat-trick of Top 5 finishes at Kansas, Darlington, and Charlotte. This consistent run also saw him do enough to sneak into the Playoffs for the first time.

2023 is a career-best campaign for Bubba Wallace

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In the buildup to the season, he told Racer’s Kelly Crandall, “Just having conversations [recently] about how we are so much better as a team and as a manufacturer from Phoenix [race] one to Phoenix [race] two, it just makes you think about how much better you’ll be starting the year off. It took us all year to figure out this car; we’re still figuring it out day by day. Having the right people in our camp and back at the shop figuring all that out to get us ready and prepped for next year is super exciting.”

Owing to his Playoff run, the worst that he could finish was 16th. However, he defied the odds and made it into the Round of 12, but that was as far as he got. This was because he could not win to automatically secure a berth and didn’t score enough points either. From a championship perspective, it is a very big win because it is still a career-best finishing position for Wallace. Also joining him are Ross Chastain, Brad Keselowski, and Kyle Busch.

READ MORE: “I’m Ready for Next Season to Start”: After Personal Best Season, Bubba Wallace Aims for Bigger Swings in 2023

What next for Bubba Wallace in the NASCAR Cup Series?

With his Playoff elimination, the next order of business is to play wingman for teammate Tyler Reddick. As a teammate, he would have to aim to help Reddick’s own championship bid until his own elimination. Since joining 23XI Racing, he has helped build up the team and worked hard to bring them up the championship order. Of course, he would love to snatch another race win, and this time he can do it at his own leisure. In other words, there won’t be the stress of trying to win in order to reach the Playoffs.

However, time is running out to end the season with at least one win, as there are four races left. If it helps, it could throw a serious spanner in the works for his rivals by denying them a chance of automatic promotion. He definitely had the pace to win on multiple occasions, with a few pole positions under his belt. Wallace has also found himself running at the sharp end of many races. So rest assured, 2023 was a far from a terrible year for the #23 driver.

Who knows, maybe the 2024 campaign would hold better fortunes for him. As long as he continues driving fast and giving his teammate and rivals a run for their money, he could be a strong title contender. Love him or hate him, no one can deny that he isn’t talented, and his two Cup Series race wins are enough proof of it. Add to that, six wins in the NACAR Truck Series, and one would realize that Wallace has some serious pace. With the way that 23XI is progressing, the next win isn’t too far away from Bubba Wallace. It is worth noting that he does generally perform well on superspeedways since both of his wins came at superspeedway.

WATCH THIS STORY: Bubba Wallace Insider Urges NASCAR to Respond to Ryan Blaney’s Plea for Help