Bubba Wallace ‘frustrated’ as Talladega victory slips away on the last lap

Bubba Wallace cut a despondent look after the Yellawood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. The 23XI Racing driver rued a missed opportunity that left him 'pissed off'.

Wallace, who secured his maiden Cup Series win at the track, began Sunday's race in tenth and rounded out the top-5 by Stage 1. He later dropped to a backmarker finish in Stage 2, before slotting amidst the frontrunners by race end.

On the final lap, Wallace was fighting Chase Briscoe for the race win after Kyle Larson dropped off the inside lane due to low fuel, allowing Briscoe to get alongside Wallace. However, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver had his teammate Ty Gibbs to back him up. Gibbs pushed Briscoe, and the latter cleared Wallace with a 0.145-second margin.

Reflecting on the near miss, Wallace spoke to NASCAR reporter Steven Taranto and said,

"We made it to the team, but we beat ourselves. A really good opportunity there at the end and didn't have all the pieces of a puzzle there so bummed, frustrated, pissed off, wanted to get us another one. We got two more." "Obviously, you never know when people are going to run out. I think we could have covered that a little bit better than hard. Like if I’d have popped bottom, the 19 would’ve drove around me on top. So just wasn’t meant to be crazy how it all played out then,” he added.

Bubba Wallace ultimately finished behind Todd Gilliland and Carson Hocevar at fourth. The 23XI Racing driver previously came close to a win at Kansas, where he was shoved aside by Denny Hamlin on the final lap, leaving Chase Elliott enough room to swing by and get the win.

---

Bubba Wallace details latest mental heath shift

In an interview with ESPN, Bubba Wallace outlined the pressures of work-life balance amidst a packed schedule. He highlighted the Kansas result as an example of how his outlook has evolved into a more grounded approach.

"I get back to the bus now, and Amanda is more upset than I am. It's difficult to navigate that because over the years she's known this is what we have, and I have to make this work.....like after Kansas, I was fine, and she's beside herself. It's kind of funny," he said.

In line with his comments, Bubba Wallace kept it cordial during the post-race interviews at Kansas. He did mention that certain lines were crossed by Denny Hamlin, but didn't escalate the matter further.

The result, however, ruined Wallace's chances in the playoffs. He later got eliminated in the playoff race at Charlotte Roval. Nonetheless, his playoff run has been a mixed bag so far. Alongside his mid-pack and backmarker finishes, Wallace has also recorded an equal share of top-10 results.

Get the latest NASCAR All-Star race news, Xfinity Series updates, breaking news, rumors, and today’s top stories with the latest news on NASCAR.

Edited by Vignesh Kanna