After spending more than nine seasons grinding through the NASCAR Cup Series, Bubba Wallace returned to the Playoffs for just the second time in his career and wasted no time making his presence felt. He launched his postseason run with authority, locking himself into the Round of 12 by the end of Stage 1 in the Round of 16 elimination race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Advertisement
Momentum followed him west to Kansas Speedway, where a victory would have punched Wallace’s ticket to the Round of 8. That opportunity, however, ended in the closing corners when 23XI Racing co-owner Denny Hamlin slid high in Turn 3, pushing Wallace into the wall.
The contact dropped Wallace to a fifth-place finish that night and ultimately left him 11th in the final standings, with first-year crew chief Charles Denike calling the shots. Even so, Wallace views the 2025 campaign through a far different lens than the final result suggests.
One position shy of his career-best points finish from 2023, Wallace remains firm in his assessment, “I’d call it a successful season, for sure.”
The numbers back him up. Wallace matched his single-season high with 14 top-10 finishes and equaled his career mark with six top-five results. He also led 378 laps, the most he has ever paced in a single Cup season behind the wheel of the No. 23 Toyota Camry of 23XI Racing.
Wallace’s defining moment of the year came at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. His win in the Brickyard 400 not only ended a 100-race winless drought but delivered one of NASCAR’s crown jewel trophies. Wallace, however, downplayed the significance saying,
“For me, it was just another win. It’s cool to have the Brickyard 400 behind your name, for sure. But honestly, I felt like I was going out to win a late model race or something.”
Hamlin took notice of his improvement as well, praising Wallace for often fielding the fastest car within the organization.
Across the season, Wallace set the competitive tone inside 23XI Racing. He led more laps than his teammate and Tyler Reddick and trailed him by only six stage points. That consistency echoed a more all-around shift in approach, one Wallace attributes to changes beyond the racetrack.
The arrival of his son, Becks, last year reshaped his perspective and fueled a more balanced mindset. “It’s been a lot of fun to show up at the racetrack with a new mindset, and having an opportunity to win just about every week is what you want. You keep throwing your name in the hat – I’ve always said it – they’ll eventually pull it.”
That philosophy carried into his working relationship with Denike. Wallace reiterated the message he delivered when the two first connected. “‘Man, I want to have fun when we go to the racetrack,’ and we’ve been doing just that. So, I appreciate him.”
The results followed as Wallace showed measurable gains across all track types in 2025, including road courses, long considered a weak point. His No. 23 Toyota routinely ran closer to the front than in previous seasons, and he entered the Playoffs with a legitimate shot at reaching the semifinal round.
With momentum building and Denike set for a second year atop the pit box, the No. 23 driver will enter 2026 positioned to take another step forward.
