Bubba Wallace’s Crew Chief Blames Chase Elliott for Playoff Distress

The annals of 2023 have unfolded as a challenging era for diverse NASCAR stars, including Chase Elliott, Daniel Suarez, Bubba Wallace, and Kevin Harvick, among others. Within this spectrum, some have clinched their playoff berths while sitting on the edge, while others have regrettably fallen short.

An ideal illustration manifests in Bubba Wallace, whose qualification for the playoffs hung in the balance until the pivotal lap of the regular season’s finale race at Daytona. Fortunately, the success of Chris Buescher furnished him with a thrifty rescue, marking 2023 as the inaugural occasion of his playoff participation.

Yet, despite the playoff aspirations, the overall season’s stress is casting its shadow not only upon Wallace but also on his competent crew chief. But why does Bubba Wallace’s crew chief hold Chase Elliott accountable for the stress that characterized his driver’s playoff pursuit?

Bubba Wallace’s crew chief believes that passing Chase Elliott has cost them good numbers

In the aftermath of the Atlanta race, Bubba Wallace and the No. 23 team have been perpetually trapped in heightened tension. Despite road courses not being Wallace’s natural domain, it appears that Watkins Glen was the locale where he could potentially shift this narrative. Amidst a discussion concerning the tangible pressure gripping Bubba Wallace and his team during the final few races of the regular season, his crew chief, Bootie Barker III, highlighted the importance of the Watkins Glen race.

Barker contended that the race possessed the potential to relieve the mounting pressure, were it not for the interference of Hendrick Motorsports favorite Chase Elliott.

Barker expressed, “Even Watkins Glen would have been better; we got caught by the caution. Because we passed the #9, and then the #9 ran behind us. So, I would have loved that buffer. If we could have finished 7th or 8th, it would have given us 4-5 more points, which would have almost locked us in the same points as Daytona. It is funny that those times make such a difference.”

Despite the setback at Watkins Glen, Bubba Wallace has triumphantly secured his position. This accomplishment undoubtedly marks the realization of a long-cherished aspiration for the 23XI racing team.

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However, a mysterious question lingers: What is the rationale behind his own team owner, Denny Hamlin’s, belief that Bubba Wallace may encounter challenges in venturing deeper into the playoffs?

Denny Hamlin casts doubt on Bubba Wallace’s playoff strategy

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Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin’s driver, No. 23, made it to the playoffs for the first time, predicated not upon race victories but upon a shrewd and calculated approach that capitalizes on stage point accumulation, as corroborated by his crew chief. However, while engaging in bold suspicions concerning fellow drivers on his podcast, Denny Hamlin expressed reservations about the efficacy of Bubba Wallace’s continued dependence on stage points, given their transient nature.

In Hamlin’s estimation, the tendency to gather stage points, coupled with commendable qualifying performances and a consistent string of finishes in the lower echelons of the leaderboard over the preceding half-dozen weeks, may not suffice as a winning strategy.

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Hamlin underscored the imperative for Bubba Wallace’s team to translate such promising starts into more robust finishes. He opined, “He collects a lot of stage points, he qualifies well, and he has finished in the low teens pretty consistently over the last 6-7 weeks. […] They fade at the end. They have to figure out how to finish better. […] I think that, that would be the negative for the 23XI team as keeping up with the weekend and maintaining track position throughout the race.”

Indeed, the collection of stage points may not represent the optimal trajectory for Bubba Wallace’s advancement during the playoffs. This realization necessitates an extraordinary shift in strategy for him to secure a coveted position within the top 8 or top 4.