Bubba Wallace’s playoff hopes are hanging by a thread. With just eight races remaining in the regular season, the 23XI Racing driver finds himself walking a tightrope, being just 23 points ahead of Ryan Preece for the final playoff spot on points.
With the regular season winding down, Wallace’s grip on a NASCAR Cup Series playoff spot has never been more precarious. A disappointing 22nd-place finish at Atlanta dropped Wallace in the playoff standings right on the cutline. With no win so far this season to lock himself in, every race from here on out could be make or break.
Inconsistency Plagues Bubba Wallace’s 2025 NASCAR Campaign
Wallace’s 2025 season has been marred by extreme highs and lows. Though he’s posted six top-10 finishes, with strong runs at Nashville, Michigan, and Mexico City, Wallace also logged five finishes outside the top 20 in the last eight races. A brake failure at Pocono resulted in him finishing in 36th place, and damage from an early wreck at Atlanta meant he came in at 22nd.
From earlier today: Bubba Wallace’s Winless Streak Mounts As He Clings To Playoff Spot @NASCARONFOX https://t.co/58ERE9f5R2
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) June 30, 2025
Despite Wallace’s winless streak, his car owner, Denny Hamlin, expects him to win soon. “I just know the resources that we’ve put in at 23XI, and all of our drivers should win. That is the expectation that I have of them. Obviously, it is a results-based business, and if you don’t over time, you consider your options,” Hamlin told Fox’s Bob Pockrass.
Hamlin added, “Overall, I’ve seen enough progression, specifically, from the [Wallace] standpoint, that I can see where this can go. Putting himself in a playoff position year after year is good, but winning makes it better.”
Sitting on the cutline, Wallace currently holds the final playoff spot with eight races to go. So far into the season, only four playoff spots remain available through points.
Beyond the 12 race winners who have booked their spot, the drivers currently holding those non-win positions are Tyler Reddick (+128), Chris Buescher (+52), Alex Bowman (+39), and Bubba Wallace (+23). While Wallace still has a slight advantage over the cutline, the pressure is mounting.
A single surprise victory from a driver outside the top 16, such as Ryan Preece or Austin Cindric, would immediately bump the cutline upward and likely knock Wallace out. For Wallace, that means making every race from here on out a critical opportunity to extend the gap or finally break his winless drought.
As the regular season winds down, the 23XI Racing driver is well aware of the urgency to win. “We have expected to win at this point in the season, and we have yet to do that,” Wallace said. “But it goes back to executing, and if we can just do our jobs, there’s no one behind us in the points that can beat us. So we’ll just continue to do that.”
