Last Sunday’s Advent Health 400 race at Kansas Speedway was a tough one for Kyle Busch. Now we all know that he wrecked late in the race after being put in a four-wide, but going by his admission, his chances were hampered well before he found himself stuck in the grass.

Like Busch, Bubba Wallace is equally eager to find himself back in the victory lane. But at Kanas, the No. 23 car was just off the pace and couldn’t make any ground. Now unable to gain track position, Wallace resorted to defensive tactics against Rowdy. The RCR driver was already having a hard time dealing with his race car in the early going, “Un—— believable, these cars suck so bad,” and just when he found enough speed to make his way up front, Wallace resorted to mirror driving.

On Actions Detrimental with Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch recounted his frustrating battle with Bubba Wallace, laying out how Wallace’s defensive driving cost him dearly. “That’s what happened to me in the 23, there was a point in the race I ran him down from half a straightaway and then I got underneath him and then he pulled down to kind of aero block and then I lost 10 car lengths, I ran back down again and I went high and he let it drift up into the high groove, aero blocked me, lost 10 car lengths and I was like if can he please just let me go? Like we’re losing time, we are bleeding time from the guys in front of us, I am faster, just please,”

The thing is, the Next Gen car is aero-sensitive, and it gives an edge to the driver in the leading position. Bubba Wallace did exactly that. Although he wasn’t going anywhere in the race, he just didn’t want to fall in the pecking order and raced for his position. Had it been the Xfinity Series cars, the story would’ve been different. As the cars behave differently, with those cars you can run up to the side bumper, make the lead car lose its grip, and that is how passes were made back in the day.

Hamlin, who knows very well how the Next Gen car reacts to aero blocks shared his take, “It’s very interesting for me to see people that are willing to sacrifice their own lap time just to mirror drive to hold off the one position but the problem is they are letting others come into the mix right… You know everyone’s got a different philosophy, and they were not good. The 23XI cars, I’m not sure what’s really going on, they’ve lost their mojo.”

Bubba Wallace ended his race with a DNF, and their star driver, Tyler Reddick, could only manage a 17th-place finish. What’s more concerning is the fact that Reddick hasn’t been able to score a top 10 in his last four races. So, something is definitely off at 23XI Racing.

Wallace’s Season and the Road Ahead

Bubba Wallace’s 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season has been a rollercoaster, with the 23XI Racing driver sitting 10th in the standings with 310 points after 12 races. After bagging two consecutive top 5 finishes earlier in the season at Homestead and Martinsville, he has now suffered two consecutive DNFs. Thanks to the stage wins he’s scored along the way, he finds himself in a good spot so far. But relying on points hasn’t worked out for Wallace. Last year, he missed the playoffs, and with only 14 races left in the regular season, his team is on the clock.

Interestingly, the wreck that ended his race at Kansas was sparked by Corey Heim, who had the best finish (13) among all 23XI Racing cars. “I don’t know who I wiped out there, and I don’t want to destroy any race cars, but I feel like I was squeezed there. I’d like to think I didn’t do anything wrong but I also haven’t seen it yet. I guess we’ll see.” Heim said in his defence.

The alarm bell has to ring within the 23XI Racing camp. Tyler Reddick is without a win, Bubba Wallace is back on points hunts, and with the schedule that is lined up ahead, connecting for wins is going to be tough. Hopefully, the team can work out a plan before NASCAR goes points racing at Charlotte after this weekend’s All-Star race.