Standing on the iconic track of Daytona, the blinding floodlights on the track appeared to mellow down in front of the 23XI Racing pit stall. Still, laughter and tears of joy overflowed as the team members congratulated each other. The reason for such celebrations? Bubba Wallace clinched the 16th and the final spot in the playoffs. Owing to this, even the team owner and NBA legend Michael Jordan sauntered onto the pit road to pat the driver on his back and send his congratulations.

It’s been more than two weeks since the celebrations burst out on Daytona. Two playoff races have already taken its shape and one last elimination race at Bristol to decide the fate of the remaining driver. Now, four drivers stand in a vulnerable position, including Bubba Wallace. On account of this, can it be asserted that it was the Kansas race and the lapse of judgment by the No.23 team that led to the downfall of the driver?

Bubba Wallace falls short in Kansas as the team fails to communicate

There is no denying the fact that Kansas Speedway has been one of the strongest turfs for the 23XI Racing team. Kurt Busch and Bubba Wallace both have scored a victory on this track and now Tyler Reddick has also joined the party. Nonetheless, the race at Kansas started on a high note for Bubba Wallace. Flaunting one of the fastest cars, Wallace showed early signs of dominance on the track and ran as high as the second position on the leaderboard in Stage 1.

However, the tidings were not in favor of the No.23 driver, as he suffered from a right rear tire failure, a common scenario on Sunday. Apart from Martin Truex Jr, it was Bubba Wallace who was compelled to concede after he fell victim to a tire blowout at Lap 108. This resulted in the driver being shoved to the outside wall while exiting turn 2 along with a broken link. The incident completely altered the fate of Bubba Wallace. However, the question is could the incident be averted through timely intervention by the pit crew members?

Well, the answer can be affirmative, given the radio conversation between Wallace and his pit members. The driver was heard speaking on the radio, “I’m loose,” while his spotter, Freddie Kraft, retorted, “Did you say loose?” 

However, to no avail from his team, Wallace again expressed, “Yeah, I had one slip and now I’m f*cking wrecking.” The driver’s fervent plea failed to hold ground among his team members, which eventually led to the driver being spun and wrecked. 

After the occurrence of the incident, crew chief Bootie Barker stated on the radio, “Pit this time if you can.” Kraft added, “Looks like a right rear [tire].”

Had the right call come from the crew, Bubba, at the very least, could have gathered enough points to make it to the next round. As things stand, the #23 driver is 14th, 19 points away from the next round’s cut line.

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Michael Jordan’s prodigy exclaims the inception of the wreck

As the race drew close to its culmination, the Kansas Speedway painted a different and contrasting picture for Michael Jordan’s NASCAR team. While Wallace finished 32nd his teammate, Tyler Reddick clinched his second victory of the season. After the conclusion of two playoff races, Wallace fell 19 points down the elimination line.

Nevertheless, commenting upon his fateful day Wallace in a post-race interview exclaimed, “I got loose like five laps before, but I realized that was kind of my line and my approach to the exit of Turn 4.”

“And then, three or four laps later, it blew out. No indication going into [Turn 1]. I’m [mad] at myself I wasn’t closer to the fence, and maybe we would have got by with less damage.”

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With just one race left before the Round of 12, the question that lingers is whether Bubba Wallace will be able to earn his redemption at Bristol, or will bow out of the playoffs early.