CONCORD, N.C. — Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 is the third elimination race of the NASCAR Cup Series season and Bubba Wallace of 23XI Racing finds himself in a familiar position.
He’s outside the cutoff of eight drivers who will advance to the Round of Eight, but only nine points behind the final transfer spot, which is currently held by Brad Keselowski of RFK Racing. Tyler Reddick is ninth, two points behind Keselowski, with Wallace 10th, Ross Chastain 11th and Kyle Busch 12th, 26 points out of the cutoff.
Wallace also found himself in this position entering the 26th race of the season — the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Raceway. However, despite the pressure, Wallace was able to survive and advance into the 16-driver NASCAR Cup Series playoff field.
He was in jeopardy of advancing out of that round in the first of three elimination races in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway on Sept. 16. He responded with a 14th-place finish and once again, survived, and advanced.
So as Wallace arrived at Charlotte Motor Speed on Saturday morning, SPEED SPORT asked the driver if it’s a case of, “Here we go again?”
Wallace laughed.
“We’re out, right?” he replied. “We have to fight hard, execute, be patient, take what the race will give us and try to take a little bit more at the end. If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. We know what we can do here. I wouldn’t say winning is a long, long shot. We have to work really hard at that, but running well, we know we can do that.
“I look forward to the opportunity.”
Wallace responded in Saturday’s qualifications on the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, qualifying fourth with a lap at 102.569 mph in the No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota. Teammate Tyler Reddick won the pole with a fast lap at 102.839 mph in the No. 45 Toyota.
Christopher Bell’s No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was second at 102.695 mph followed by third-place Trackhouse Racing driver Daniel Suarez in the No. 99 Chevrolet at 102.603 mph.
Pretty good starting position for 23XI drivers, but does Wallace ever get used to the pressure of having to fight his way into the next round in an elimination race, as he has done twice already this season?
“No,” Wallace responded. “I said it at Daytona. I was pretty stressed out at Daytona going into it. At Bristol, I wasn’t stressed out until the race started. Right now, I’m OK. We’ll see how it goes tomorrow. I need to race with a clear head the whole time. You are thinking and doing so much here, you can get yourself in trouble.”
He is confident in his race car and proved that in qualifications.
But the race on the twisting and tight part-oval, part-road course is a unique challenge.
“This is the best road course car I’ve ever had,” Wallace said before Saturday’s qualifications. “Take that for what it’s worth. We just have to go out and execute and make no more mistakes. We qualified 13th or 14th last year, was running inside of the top 10 very early and missed the frontstretch chicane.
“I battled back to seventh or eighth. I know we can do it. It’s just cleaning up everything in between. We don’t want to work as hard, but if we have to, we are ready to roll up our sleeves and go.”
It’s a race that creates unique challenges, including close-quarter racing and challenging turns that can often throw the driver, and the car, for a loop.
“Turns three and four are off camber and you try to set your approach up correctly and that can get you in a world of trouble,” Wallace explained. “You have to be mindful. You can’t go in there lazy, but you can’t go in there too aggressive. We’ve seen a lot of cars go in there and wreck. You just have to be smart.”
Wallace has had a very good season this year. Even if he doesn’t make the playoffs, he has plenty to reflect on positively.
But a racer always looks ahead to the next battle.
“It’s a Charity Kickball Tournament and I want to win,” Wallace said. “The same applies. People will look at me like, ‘Man, you’ve done a lot of great things.’ I believe the third round of tracks suit us the best. To not have the opportunity to potentially win Las Vegas or Homestead to lock yourself into the Final Four, it’s unfortunate. I would be super frustrated.
“But it’s a big milestone for our team having both cars in the playoffs, having the 23 car in the playoffs and making it this far. It’s a lot of good, but it takes me a couple of weeks focusing on the good. Right now, I’m focusing on the bad, particularly Texas.”
His approach to Sunday’s race at the ROVAL is simple.
“For me, in road course racing, just do it,” Wallace said. “Don’t think about it, just do it.”
“Just Do It” was his team owner’s slogan when he was one of the greatest athletes in history during his legendary basketball career at the University of North Carolina, then the National Basketball Association’s Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards.
Of course, it’s Michael Jordan, who co-owns the team along with NASCAR Cup Series star Denny Hamlin.
“It’s super cool to have the support of MJ,” Wallace said. “I’ll say this to anybody, MJ is just another human being. Fans of basketball and fans of celebrities paint a bigger picture than it actually is. That’s my opinion. Super cool for him to show his support and I think he’s here this weekend.”