The next stop on the NASCAR calendar is Bristol, and the excitement is electric as fans gear up for the first playoff elimination of the 2023 season. Bristol has always been a thrilling venue, known for its high-banked short-track racing that promises intense competition. It’s short, it’s aggressive, and it comes alive at night.

As anticipation mounts, speculations and predictions are running rampant and one driver has consistently grabbed headlines throughout the playoffs. Michael Jordan’s standout driver, Bubba Wallace has been at the center of the playoffs drama, however, this time around, the attention might not be for the reasons Jordan had hoped for.

Bubba Wallace faces an uphill battle at Bristol

With just one race to go before the grid for the playoffs’ round of 12 is decided, Wallace finds himself in a precarious position, sitting below the cutline, 19 points shy of the 12th and final spot. Bristol has now become a high-stakes showdown, pushing Wallace into a do-or-die situation, reminiscent of the Daytona playoff decider where he faced a similar predicament. While Wallace managed to succeed last time, this time the odds don’t seem to favor him.

A recent GoPRNLive podcast featuring NASCAR on NBC analyst Kyle Petty and PRN Live host Doug Rice discussed Wallace’s chances in Bristol, and their assessment was swift and somewhat dismissive. As Rice stated, “I think the four below the cut line stay there. Bubba’s never been good at Bristol.” A closer look at Wallace’s history with Bristol indeed supports Rice’s case. With nine starts at the track, Wallace has only managed a lone 10th-place finish back in 2020.

However, Rice also emphasized the importance of Wallace and other drivers in similar positions adopting a bold strategy. He suggested that they might need to disregard accumulating stage points and instead focus on making bold moves, in order to position themselves for a potential race win that could propel them into the next playoff round.

Read more: Self-Mocking Bubba Wallace Shuts Down Haters With 9-Word Sarcastic Dig as He Passes “Mental” Torch to Michael Jordan’s Prodigy

“They can just kind of throw that [stage points] out the window and say – Okay, we’re gonna need to do a Hail Mary and maybe flip a stage or do something that the stage points and being upfront at the end of these stages isn’t as important as setting themselves up to potentially get a win at the end that could advance them to the next round.” Rice was upfront in stating that other drivers trailing behind the cut line have the potential to make a surge, but when it comes to Wallace, it seems he has made a confident assessment of Wallace’s prospects at Bristol.

Bubba Wallace falls short of recapturing Kansas victory

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While Bristol might not be Wallace’s track, Kansas Speedway has undoubtedly been a favorable track for the 23XI team. During last Sunday’s race at Kansas, Wallace was on the verge of clinching a victory had it not been for an unfortunate blown tire that derailed his chances.

During the ill-fated race, Wallace was running in an impressive second place when, on lap 108, a tire blowout led to a disastrous outcome. As he exited Turn 2, his car careened into the outside wall, causing significant damage, including breaking the right rear toe link. Wallace expressed his frustration, stating, “I got loose like 5 laps before but I realized that was kind of like my line and my approach to exit turn 4, and then 3 or 4 laps later it blew out. No indication going into one so I’m pi**ed at myself that I wasn’t closer to the fence.”

Despite the disappointment, Wallace displayed sportsmanship by congratulating his teammate Tyler Reddick, “Congrats to Tyler[Reddick] I’m pumped for him for sure […..] and he got his dub and proud of him, kept the #45 streak at Kansas in the fall going so it’s good.” 

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