NASCAR
Bubba Wallace Riding High Into Martinsville Speedway NASCAR Cup Series Race After ‘Really Good’ Day
Jared Turner is a motorsports writer who has covered NASCAR for 20 years. He has interviewed over 20 NASCAR Hall of Famers and around 100 drivers, crew chiefs, and team owners, both past and present. He has also covered the sport for FOX Sports (where he was a two-time recipient of the FOX “X” Award for “Xtraordinary” job performance), NASCAR.com, Sporting News, NASCAR Pole Position Magazine, the SPEED network, and plenty of other online and print-only publications throughout his career. Notably, Jared has penned dozens of articles for NASCAR souvenir programs, including several featured prominently in Daytona 500 keepsakes. A Virginia Press Association award winner and former member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA), Jared has racked up accolades both for his writing and his academic work. He studied both Communication and Psychology at Virginia Tech, where he was permanently enshrined in Phi Beta Kappa — the nation’s oldest and most prestigious academic honor society. Jared excels at feature writing and opinion writing, much of which stems from his dedication to all levels of racing.
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After a modestly disappointing 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season, Bubba Wallace has more than one reason for optimism a half-dozen races into 2025.
No, the 23XI Racing driver hasn’t won a race this year. Earning a berth in the playoffs is also far from certain.
But Wallace — in his fifth season with the team co-owned by NBA legend Michael Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin — has momentum at his back.
And the next stop on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule plays to his advantage even more.
Bubba Wallace, Despite Drought, Is Trending In A Positive Direction
The last few seasons have produced plenty of highs and lows for Wallace, an Alabama native with two career NASCAR Cup Series victories but none since 2022.
After notching his first premier series victory in a rain-shortened race at Talladega Superspeedway in 2021, Wallace returned to Victory Lane the following year at Kansas Speedway.
In 2023, Wallace achieved yet another big goal in reaching the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs for the first time. He went on to finish 10th in the standings, a career-best.
Last year, he took a bit of a step back, however, missing the playoffs and ranking 18th in points despite recording 14 top-10 finishes compared to 10 top-10s the previous season.
So, the goal for Wallace entering 2025 was clear: return to the playoffs and put to bed a lengthy absence from Victory Lane.
How’s it going?
Not so bad. Wallace is seventh in the standings and has collected 61 stage points through six races — his most ever at this point in a season by 40 points.
Wallace will roll to the grid for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway fresh off a season-best third-place finish this past weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway. In that event, Wallace didn’t just record his first top-five and second top-10 of the year, but he led 56 laps in his No. 23 Toyota.
“It was really good,” Wallace said. “We showed up in Miami and had speed. That’s the first box you want to check. We all know when you are a race car driver, you want to show up and be competitive. We were that.”
Bubba Wallace Amped About Pit Crew, Prospects For Rest Of 2025
Although all of his results from the first half dozen races of 2025 don’t show it, Wallace has been stout in his first season with crew chief Charles Denike. He’s led four races, spending a total of 98 laps out front.
Fast race cars haven’t been the only key to Wallace’s success, though. Fast pit stops have also played a role — particularly at Homestead.
“My pit crew has been on fire,” Wallace said. “Tremendous amount of work has gone into the last five years of this team to get to where we’re at. We’re not where we want to be, but we are damn sure competitive each and every stop.”
No one will be surprised if Wallace is a contender to win on Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, the first short track on the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series schedule.
Wallace triumphed twice in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series events at the paperclip-shaped Virginia oval. He finished fourth in the Cup Series race at Martinsville last spring.
So, Wallace has as much reason to be excited about what’s ahead as what’s immediately behind him — a pretty stellar day in South Florida.
