Several NASCAR Cup Series drivers took advantage of the sport’s two-week Olympic break to go on vacation and revitalize for the upcoming postseason. However, that was not the case for Bubba Wallace and his wife Amanda. The couple revealed earlier this year that they were expecting their first baby. Hence, they stayed at home for the entirety of the two weeks and the driver of the #23 Toyota enjoyed every moment of it. It was a much-needed break for the 23XI Racing star who is just outside the playoff bubble on points.
Advertisement
The couple tied the knot on New Year’s Eve in 2022 after dating for quite a while. Now, they’re going to be parents. Not everything might have gone as per plan on track but in his personal life, Wallace seems to be quite content. Speaking to the media ahead of the Cup Series race at the Richmond Raceway, the 30-year-old reminisced on his time during this break and how it was important for him to reset before the final stretch of the regular season, as well as the Playoffs.
The name’s Wallace…🕺💃 pic.twitter.com/Laxebpr2r8
— Bubba Wallace (@BubbaWallace) July 26, 2024
“Amanda and I stayed at home. We stayed at home from Thursday in the first week off until we flew out this morning. Didn’t go anywhere, the best vacation sometimes is no vacation. We enjoyed our time at home, she’s getting bigger and bigger, starting to not sleep at all. We’re just under two months out so we’re excited for that,” he told the media.
It has been a frustrating season so far for the Mobile, Alabama native. Despite that, Wallace came up with a solid performance at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway last time out. He finished the race in P5 and cut the gap between him and the playoff cutline to just seven points.
Wallace has a strong chance to make the playoffs
It doesn’t take a lot to overturn seven points and with four regular season races remaining, the 23XI Racing driver has a real chance to qualify for the postseason. Last year, he made it into the playoffs and went until the second round. Anything less than that this season would be seen as a downgrade.
While qualifying on points seems like a real possibility, Wallace would much rather want to win one of the remaining regular season races and confirm his spot in the best way possible. His recent form has been fantastic. He finished P5 at the Brickyard and P10 at the race before at Pocono. He also earned a P7 finish at the Nashville Superspeedway and might have finished higher than P13 in Chicago had he not been spun out by Alex Bowman.
All in all, the #23 driver and crew had a good run in the past few weeks leading up to the break. Now, with just four races left before the playoffs, the 30-year-old will be hoping to build on those performances and perhaps challenge for the championship in November.
