Bubba Wallace 'locked in' on winning after qualifying P8 for Crayon 301 at New Hampshire

This weekend might be a massive one for Bubba Wallace as he has his eyes set on a checkered flag before the regular season comes to an end. After NASCAR Cup Series qualifying, Wallace found himself with a P8 starting position. He was one of a few Toyotas that performed very well in the qualifying session.

Last season, Bubba Wallace was third in this New Hampshire race. With another top-10 qualifying position for the second year in a row, he wants more. It won’t be easy as he’ll have to take down Christopher Bell, the defending winner and pole-sitter for this year’s race.

On Twitter, Wallace declared he was “locked in” on closing out this season with a win ahead of the playoffs.

“Regular season is closing in, we see it,” he tweeted. “Eyes are locked in on the checkered. Time to shift our momentum and rebound. Rolling off P8 tomorrow, nothing left to do but get after it.”

Regular season is closing in, we see it. Eyes are locked in on the checkered. Time to shift our momentum and rebound. Rolling off P8 tomorrow, nothing left to do but get after it.

— Bubba Wallace (@BubbaWallace) July 15, 2023

As things stand, Bubba Wallace is on the playoff bubble. He sits 17th, just three points off of the cutline where Daniel Suárez and Michael McDowell reside. With his result last season and his qualifying session this year, he might have another special performance up his sleeve.

A win or a big points day could go a long way to getting Wallace into the playoffs. Of course, winning is easier said than done. The Magic Mile is going to throw everything it has at Wallace and the rest of the Cup Series field.

So, can the 23XI Racing driver pull it off?

Bubba Wallace looking to rebound

There is one thing that Bubba Wallace has right, he has to get his momentum back. There was a stretch of races this season where you couldn’t get Wallace out of the top-5. A blown brake rotor at Gateway changed things and since then, it has been a bit of a struggle.

This qualifying session changes things, and Wallace seems to be ready for the task at hand. This year, Wallace has four top-5 finishes and five top-10s. He has also led 58 laps on the year. One reason why he’s on the bubble and not comfortably in that 15th position in the standings, DNFs. Wallace has five on the season and they have cost him a lot of points.

Up until last season, New Hampshire was not a track that Bubba looked forward to. This year, it is one on his schedule that he has marked as a potential win. It isn’t just the superspeedways where Wallace has shown his talent recently.

With Michael McDowell (P17) and Daniel Suárez (P12) not far from Wallace in the starting order, he will have to fight hard in this race. Picking up points will be important, and if he can do that, racing for the win will come naturally.