Before the Darlington race, Bubba Wallace expressed the need to have the best race of his career to secure a playoff spot. Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned. Wallace was 21 points behind Chris Buescher going into the race and managed to close the gap to just 2 points at one point. However, Chase Briscoe’s standout performance against Kyle Busch rendered the point gap irrelevant.
Qualifying on points is always a risky move, especially with the possibility of a new driver winning. Wallace, who started from pole position, ended the race in 16th place. Despite a strong start, with a 2nd place finish in Stage One and a 9th place in Stage Two, the opportunity to make the playoffs slipped away. Buescher’s lack of points in both stages worked in Wallace’s favor initially, but as the race progressed, Wallace’s chances of winning diminished. It seems the team’s strategy may have faltered, and spotter Freddie Kraft admitted to the mistakes.
Post-race, a frustrated Wallace reflected on what went wrong, noting the car was “a little too loose, a little too tight” and got caught in someone else’s mess. He believed that different pit stop decisions could have changed his outcome. On the Door Bumper Clear podcast, Brett Griffin commented that Wallace’s decision not to pit while others did was detrimental.
The issue began when Wallace, who had a lead over Buescher, stayed out during a caution caused by Buescher turning Todd Gilliland on Lap 321. Everyone behind Wallace pitted, but he remained on old tires. After the restart, Wallace lost several positions due to the tire disadvantage.
The crash left Wallace entangled in the wreckage, ultimately finishing 27 points short of a playoff spot. Darlington’s abrasive track surface made fresher tires a crucial advantage. If Wallace had pitted for fresh tires, the outcome might have been different, as demonstrated by Kyle Busch’s late surge to 2nd place with new tires.
Looking ahead, the focus for Wallace and the #23 team should be on consistency and finishing the season strong to set up a better start for the next year. Despite not securing a win in the 2024 season, Wallace has achieved his best statistical performance, matching his top-five and top-ten finishes from the past two years and boasting his highest average finish. However, his career has only seen two wins so far.
Jeff Gluck on ‘The Teardown’ podcast advised Wallace to focus on winning rather than points next year, emphasizing the car’s winning potential.
The #23 team often finds itself in unfortunate situations, which Gluck attributed to both bad luck and strategic errors. Wallace needs to avoid getting caught in such predicaments and capitalize on his car’s potential. Hopefully, next season will see Wallace contending for wins. What are your thoughts? Share them in the comments below.
