A little nudge for the win—that is all it takes. And Bubba Wallace is prepared to give that nudge, although not for his benefit. His teammate Tyler Reddick is currently 3rd in points, with a keen aim for the 2024 Cup Series championship. In the meantime, Wallace is nursing his wounds from narrowly missing the playoffs last weekend in Darlington. However, the No. 23 driver is ready to push his buddy.

The first playoff segment will play out at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Its 2022 reconfiguration gives it intermediate-track qualities, something that Wallace excels at. So the 23XI Racing driver is prepared to teach his teammate all the tricks of the sleeve, despite his dry situation.

Bubba Wallace is overlooking his misery for a greater cause

Ever since 23XI Racing took root in 2020, co-owners Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan instilled some powerful ideals in the team. The team stood out for their close-knit unity, as both No. 23 and No. 45 employees work together to achieve Victory Lane narratives. So Bubba Wallace is upholding that ideal even after missing the playoffs after Chase Briscoe won at Darlington. His dismay is clearly visible as he posted his career-best 10 top-tens and 5 top-fives this year. Yet Wallace wants to push his teammate.

After all, clinching the regular season championship is no mean feat. Bubba Wallace heaped praise on Tyler Reddick in a recent presser. He said, “You know, being able to win a regular-season championship in just four years for a team is big. Having the right people in the right place, having Tyler coming in – I knew from day 1 that he’d be fast and competitive and get the job done.” 

Additionally, Wallace even agreed that he is prepared to take the load, saying, “It’s fun having the pressure of figuring it out when the weekend starts. ‘Cause you know that the car is capable of winning.”

Bubba Wallace went on to show deep gratitude for the 23XI Racing fold, which pushed him and Reddick to run well every weekend. He swallowed his misery to thank his team, “On the outside looking in, it sucks, you know. But at the same time, you’re happy for the team. And I can say that confidently, not just blowing smoke. It’s cool to see how everybody’s come together and worked their ass off to get to where we are and build fast race cars. I mean, every track we show up to, you can count on the 23 or the 45.”

Despite Bubba Wallace’s buoyant outlook about 23XI Racing’s efforts, a NASCAR expert begs to differ.

The team’s faults are also visible

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Well, some positive development is expected after four years. Bubba Wallace is currently in his fourth year running in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Yet he sports only two wins and one playoff entry. Meanwhile, his teammate Reddick is advancing in leaps and bounds, clinching his 7th career victory at Michigan. Moreover, Wallace glaringly axed his strongest chance at entering the playoffs. Even after winning the Darlington pole, finishing second in stage 1, and gaining stage points, he could not convert his opportunity.

That is what journalist Jordan Bianchi pointed out—the No. 23 team lost its speed when it was crucial. “The speed went away a little bit and that’s another problem with this. Sometimes they don’t do a good enough job of staying on top of it and the car fades a little bit. You gotta stay on top of that. They got back in traffic there and got caught up in a wreck.” He added, “Bad luck, but you’ve gotta stop putting yourself in those positions where you’re at Michigan and you’re in the middle of the pack with a fast car. Sometimes that’s unavoidable with pit stop cycles, but too often it seems like they find themselves in these spots where they shouldn’t be, and bad things happen to them.”

Despite the lack of speed on his own team, Bubba Wallace is looking forward to No. 45’s success. Let us see how the Atlanta race pans out for both.