The 23XI Racing team enters its second season in the Cup Series. This time, the outfit has expanded to two cars, with Kurt Busch joining Bubba Wallace. Owing to this, team co-owner Denny Hamlin hopes to see some on-track progress. Admittedly, he has set some lofty goals for both of his drivers and has faith in both of them.

Hamlin said. “I want to see two cars in the playoffs. That’s kind of my expectations of the team. Things happen, I understand that, but that is my expectation. Both cars contend for a spot in the playoffs and get in. I don’t think that’s unrealistic, I think that when I look at our team in general. We have the same amount of enthusiasm behind it 16 months ago when we announced. Because we continued to push the boundaries, continued to expand. You saw with the merchandise drop our team had, we want to be different from what you’ve seen in the garage.”

Can Denny Hamlin see his drivers achieve the set target?

Last season, despite his maiden Cup Series race win, Wallace finished 21st in the standings. On the bright side, this was a career-best championship finish for the African-American driver. However, the #23 driver needs to work on his consistency in order to be competitive in the sport. With Kurt Busch now in the 23XI Racing stable, Denny Hamlin hopes that they can push the team forward.

Considering that Busch is a former Cup Series champion, the outfit can benefit from his expertise. In addition to that, Bubba Wallace can also learn a lot from the NASCAR veteran. As for the drivers’ own expectations, the 2004 series champion is hoping to rack up race wins and contend for the championship. Meanwhile, Wallace will want to build on his maiden win and add some more under his belt.

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