23XI Racing had a good outlook heading into Kansas Speedway. After all, Bubba Wallace won the 2022 Fall race after the Next-Gen car debuted, and Reddick clinched the trophy exactly one year later for Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan’s team. Yet despite the two drivers’ past fortunes at the 1.5-mile oval, the 2025 NASCAR race is going bleak.

Bubba Wallace won his way into the 2025 Cup Series playoffs, winning the Brickyard 400 back in July. While the No. 23 driver has been consistently finishing well, Tyler Reddick’s No. 45 has been off its pace. Hence, Wallace’s agitation as team leader boiled over on the racetrack.

In-team conflict breaks out in the Kansas NASCAR race

Well, both Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick had decent starting positions. Reddick started the Hollywood Casino 400 in 7th place, while Reddick kicked off in 12th place. However, both had to target a victory if either had to crack into the Round of 8. That is because their point situation looked very dismal. Ahead of the Kansas race, Reddick was 23 points below the cutoff line, while Wallace was 27 points below.

Yet both 23XI Racing drivers capitalized on their starting positions, leading the race several times. On lap 257, Bubba Wallace was hotly contesting Christopher Bell for the lead and eventually got ahead. However, Tyler Reddick’s ill-timed moves for the pass right at that moment deprived the No. 23 Toyota driver’s hard-earned track position. This elicited an outburst from Wallace, as we heard on his in-car radio, “(Reddick) had one f—— job, man. One f—— job.”

Right at that time, Carson Hocevar spun out his No. 77 Chevrolet with 7 laps to go. This brought out caution, and Tyler Reddick was unable to grab the lead of the NASCAR race with his No. 45 Toyota. Lamenting both his and his teammate’s fortunes, Reddick apologized to Wallace. Journalist Jeff Gluck reported on X: Reddick after caution came out: “Tell Bubba I’m sorry. Really really sorry. I’ll try not to fuck that up again.”

To compound the worsening situation, Bubba Wallace had beef with another Toyota driver as well. That was none other than his 23XI Racing team owner, Denny Hamlin. When Wallace was leading on the final lap, the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing driver snuck up to his side and made contact. But Wallace would not lift, and this sustained door-to-door contact made both of them lose pace. That allowed Chase Elliott, a Chevrolet driver of Hendrick Motorsports, to clinch the victory.

Both Wallace and Hamlin exchanged barbs over the radio.

While Bubba Wallace’s Toyota spat expanded, Tyler Reddick tried to make amends. His apologetic stance was audible in the post-race interview as well.

Admitting a scope for improvement

Well, Tyler Reddick was in a stickier situation than Bubba Wallace. At 23 points below the current elimination line and 11th of the 12 postseason contenders chasing a spot in the Round of 8, Reddick needed a turnaround on Sunday’s NASCAR race. He has been riding a winless streak since his Homestead-Miami victory during the 2024 playoffs. And at the same time, he knew that relying on top fives or top tens would eventually not suffice in the 2025 title run. Hence, Reddick got a bit desperate in the final laps of the Hollywood Casino 400 race.

In trying to revive his Kansas mojo from 2023, Tyler Reddick admittedly disadvantaged his teammate’s chances. After clinching a 7th-place finish, Reddick said, “Yeah, I tried to give him the best push I could. I was really fortunate the previous restart; he was able to hold the lead. I don’t know, I tried to push him, and we just got separated. Obviously, I wanna push him, try and help him win. And then obviously keep the gap closed up to try and be in second and have a shot at it myself. It’s a tough day…Obviously, there’s only one thing we can do in Charlotte. That’s what we’ll keep our focus on.”

Clearly, 23XI Racing’s team meetings will have added layers of tension after this. Let’s wait and see what turns out, as both Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick are aiming for glory in the upcoming NASCAR race at the Charlotte Roval.