Bubba Wallace was none too happy Saturday night. The 23XI Racing driver crossed the line third in the NASCAR Coke Zero 400 At Daytona, a finish that was later moved up to a second place at Chris Buescher’s No. 17 was disqualified in post-race inspection. Ryan Blaney won the race in a Ford.
Despite equaling his best Daytona finish, Wallace still missed out on making the Playoffs.
“Solid day,” Wallace said. “I mean, we led some laps. This is the best I’ve kept a speedway car clean. Just some nose damage. Thanks to Columbia. I gave them a good run.”
“I’m a little frustrated,” he added. “I’m the one that gets called out for not working with teammates, and I’m the one that gets left hanging. That’s the reason why Ford is in Victory Lane, because they always work together.”
Now that he’s out of the Playoffs, Wallace has one goal.
“17th in points,” he said. “That’s what we want to do. Just continue to climb from here. Appreciate everybody that is a part of this program. A fun regular season figuring out this team with 23XI. Toyota jumping onboard, being a part of it, taking me back under their wing. All of our partners, DoorDash, Columbia, DoorDash, Dr. Pepper, McDonald’s. It just stings.
“Happy for Ryan, though. We’ll celebrate a little bit tonight.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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