With the NASCAR Cup Series 2024 playoffs just around the corner, the stakes have dramatically shifted for many drivers after the thrilling race at Nashville Superspeedway. While some drivers have consistently impressed over the past few races, maintaining their positions on the leaderboard, Bubba Wallace has caught the eye of veteran driver Kevin Harvick. Harvick dedicated a segment to Wallace on his show, “Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour,” where he highlighted Wallace’s performance and compared it to Kyle Busch, who’s also in crisis mode.

Is Bubba looking to hit the panic button?

Bubba Wallace has been a solid mid-pack driver so far in the 2024 Cup Series, but he hasn’t yet snagged a win or shown the consistent front-running pace many expected from him this season. After his performance at Nashville Superspeedway for the Ally 400, Kevin Harvick has now put him on his radar for ‘drivers who should hit the panic button.’

Harvick thinks Wallace and his team are just missing a bit of speed and haven’t been able to put together complete, successful races. This is something he’s also noted about Kyle Busch’s performance this season. Both drivers are struggling with maintaining speed and facing misfortunes that keep them from better results.

“I think they’re just missing a little bit on the speed side of things and haven’t been able to put a lot of things together,” Harvick said in Episode 39 of “Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour,” episode aired on July 2nd.

“And when they do, it’s kind of been like Kyle Busch. It doesn’t go right for them, it doesn’t seem to work out in the end. I think they have the capability to put more speed together at certain places and it’s just going to come down to capitalizing on those days where he’s able to go to a race track where they can do that.”

When you look at it, Bubba Wallace did have a good run going for him and the team, but as Harvick points out, something seems to go wrong. The reason this is a big issue is that Wallace is currently 51 points behind the 16th and final playoff spot, something similar to what happened last year around this time. If another driver outside the top 16 wins a race, it’s going to make it even harder for Wallace to make the playoffs.

Harvick’s solution to Wallace? Earn more stage points in order to make up that big deficit and secure a playoff spot. The same goes out for Kyle Busch, but his leap is going to take a longer running start than Wallace. Both of them still have the opportunity open to him to secure a playoff spot if he really buckles down and hits the peddle to the medal right now. Hopefully, the next few tracks will present an opening for him to take the lead and surprise everyone.

First up is the all-new Chicago Street Course, which is uncharted territory for everyone, but Wallace has a knack for road courses, so if he ventures through this with a positive mind to win, this could be his breakout moment! Then there’s Daytona International Speedway, the ultimate wild card for Wallace, who has a history of nearly winning the Daytona 500. If the odds are in his favor, then this may finally be his year!

So, the outlook for Bubba Wallace might just be brightening! With a little luck and some stellar performances on these upcoming tracks, he and 23XI Racing may just be able to secure a playoff spot after all. It’s an exciting time to watch out for, NASCAR fans! Settle in, because the good part of the show has just begun.