This article is part of our NASCAR Barometer series.
Car No. 45 won at Kansas Speedway for the second time this season, but this time it was at the hands of Bubba Wallace. The team has fielded strong vehicles throughout 2022, and Sunday's win put their second driver in Victory Lane. It was Wallace's second victory with 23XI Racing and the team's third in just two years of existence. Wallace started the weekend with a top-10 qualifying effort, which gave him the valuable track position he then used to spend the entire day racing among the top 10. Wallace's time came after the 200-lap mark, as he claimed the lead and dominated the final miles of the race relatively unchallenged and took the checkered flag. The win is a boost for 23XI Racing in the owner's championship, as they remain in the running, despite not having any drivers in the playoffs, given Busch's victory earlier in the season. Wallace's strength Sunday should be a signal that he and the team may yet claim more victories before the season ends.
Wallace winning Sunday made it two nonplayoff driver victories in the first two playoff races. That heaps pressure on the playoff contenders to have a mistake-free weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. This week's race will be a make-or-break one for many drivers. Kevin Harvick, Chase Briscoe, Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch are on the outside looking in. Tyler Reddick and Austin Cindric are tied just two points into the safety zone with just 25 points separating them
Car No. 45 won at Kansas Speedway for the second time this season, but this time it was at the hands of Bubba Wallace. The team has fielded strong vehicles throughout 2022, and Sunday's win put their second driver in Victory Lane. It was Wallace's second victory with 23XI Racing and the team's third in just two years of existence. Wallace started the weekend with a top-10 qualifying effort, which gave him the valuable track position he then used to spend the entire day racing among the top 10. Wallace's time came after the 200-lap mark, as he claimed the lead and dominated the final miles of the race relatively unchallenged and took the checkered flag. The win is a boost for 23XI Racing in the owner's championship, as they remain in the running, despite not having any drivers in the playoffs, given Busch's victory earlier in the season. Wallace's strength Sunday should be a signal that he and the team may yet claim more victories before the season ends.
Wallace winning Sunday made it two nonplayoff driver victories in the first two playoff races. That heaps pressure on the playoff contenders to have a mistake-free weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. This week's race will be a make-or-break one for many drivers. Kevin Harvick, Chase Briscoe, Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch are on the outside looking in. Tyler Reddick and Austin Cindric are tied just two points into the safety zone with just 25 points separating them from Kyle Larson, who is eighth in the standings. There is still everything to play for at one of NASCAR's most electric tracks, and the pressure is sure to boil over this coming week.
UPGRADE
Bubba Wallace – Wallace put his car in the stage points in both of Sunday's stages before taking the lead in the final 100 miles of the race. Once Wallace had the No. 45 machine out front he dominated in clean air. He led a total of 58 laps, maintaining a steady multi-second gap over second position, to cruise to his second series victory. Despite not being in the playoffs, his win is a big boost the team's standing in the owner's championship. It was the second playoff race not won by a driver in the running for the championship and moves Wallace to 18th in the standings. It was a just reward for a step up in competitiveness from him this season. He has one top-10 from seven Bristol starts and will be using this past week's momentum to grab another.
Christopher Bell – Bell avoided the pitfalls of the first stage Sunday in Kansas to nail the final restart and win the segment. He continued to show his pace through the second stage and finished second in that segment. Bell was one of the fastest cars all afternoon despite leading just 12 laps, and he used that pace to put himself in position to finish third and boost his playoff standing. The No. 20's speed in the final miles wasn't a match for Wallace, who drove away once he got into clean air. Bell eventually slipped a further position back when teammate Denny Hamlin put on a chase for the lead. Bell's race put him atop the playoff standings with just Bristol remaining before the round of 12 commences. Bell has three prior Bristol starts with a best finish of ninth and has a 56-point cushion over the elimination zone. He advances into the round of 12.
Alex Bowman – Bowman took the final restart of the second stage on the front row alongside teammate and championship rival William Byron, snatching the lead and the stage 2 win Sunday at Kansas. Bowman had an impressive afternoon with 107 laps led. His speed faded a bit in the final miles, but he still walked away with an important fourth-place finish. That was his second top-10 finish in the playoffs so far, and that is enough to give him a 28-point advantage over the elimination zone with one race remaining. If the playoffs continue to be unpredictable and trouble filled, continuing to finish in the top 10 each week will serve the No. 48 team very well on the path to Phoenix. Bowman has two top-fives from 11 series Bristol starts, both fifth-place finishes, and one was in last season's race.
Denny Hamlin – Hamlin continues to run among the best of the playoff contenders each week. He finished second at Kansas Sunday, grabbing stage points in the second segment, and now sits third in the standings. His runner-up finish Sunday was his second in as many playoff races, and he enters Bristol race week 47 points to the good. Hamlin will need to get to Victory Lane if he wants to secure his first series title, but right now he might be the best running of any of the playoff protagonists. He led 65 laps and finished ninth in the Bristol night race last season. He also won't have the same baggage many of the other playoff contenders will have this week, which could give him some freedom to relax and get the most out of the weekend. For Hamlin, it is all focus ahead for the playoff rounds yet to come.
Martin Truex Jr. – Truex is on a mission to prove he should have been one of the playoff contenders. The former champion led again at Kansas, which was the second playoff race in a row he raced at the front of the field. He went on to finish the race fifth. The finish was his fourth top-five of the year, and it helped to pad his points in his effort to stay on top of the nonplayoff standings. Truex would be part of the playoffs were it not for so many different race winners this season, but he can still fight to be the best of the rest. The trend of nonplayoff drivers winning playoff races could also bode well for his chances as the season draws to a close. He has never won at Bristol, but he started from pole there last season and went on to finish seventh. That was his fourth top-10 from 31 starts there.
DOWNGRADE
Kevin Harvick – Harvick entered the Kansas race weekend needing to make something happen after suffering an early exit due to a fire at Darlington. What happened was not what he needed, however. While racing in a group of cars, Harvick lost control and slammed the outside wall. The right-front wheel was completely askew from the contact, which was enough damage to make him the first playoff contender to exit the race. Having been in last position among the championship contenders Harvick now needs a win or a small miracle to advance to the next round. His three career wins at the track may give him some hope, though. He was second in the Bristol night race last season and won it the year before that.
Tyler Reddick – The tire issues experienced at Kansas earlier this season were still a problem for Reddick. While at the front of the field, he lost his right-rear tire and clouted the outside wall in the first stage. The team had to make multiple stops for repairs due to the contact, which dropped him from the front of the field. Despite soldiering on, he failed to make it as far as the stage finish, and he became the second playoff driver out of the race early. It was a blow to his playoff hopes and makes Bristol a make-or-break race for his season. He has three Bristol starts with a best finish of fourth from 2020, but he will have to navigate the night carefully with just a two-point gap separating him from advancing or being eliminated from the playoffs.
Kyle Busch – If it weren't for bad luck, Busch would have no luck at all. Busch had another poor result Sunday at Kansas after losing control off the final turn and spinning his car into the grass. The excursion pulled a tire off the rim and sent Busch to the pits for repairs. He finished the race two laps behind the leaders in 26th position, which was his second finish outside of the top 20 in the two playoff races so far. He sits in the danger zone for elimination this week, too. This week's race will decide whether he advances in the championship, and there remains no word as to whether his plans for employment in 2023 and beyond have been finalized. With eight Bristol wins, he surely can still get the job done, but the pressure is on to have a mistake-free weekend and ensure he is among the 12 drivers to stay alive in the championship hunt.
Chase Briscoe – Briscoe is staring at elimination from the playoffs. He did not have a horrible outing at Kansas, but he failed to score stage points and finished the race 13th, behind 10 other playoff contenders. After getting caught in an incident last week at Darlington he has a small mountain to climb to avoid elimination this week at Bristol. Briscoe is 15th among the 16 playoff drivers and has a nine-point deficit to safety. While that is well within reach and anything can happen, Briscoe has not shown the propensity to guide himself through to safety. He finished 13th at Bristol last year in his only series start on the track's paved surface. He will need everything to go right this week to remain in this season's championship fight.
BIGGEST SURPRISE
23XI Racing – Second-year team 23XI Racing swept season victories at Kansas Speedway with Wallace's win Sunday. It was the second time the No. 45 car drove to Victory Lane this year, but the accomplishment was made even more impressive by coming at the hands of different drivers. Kurt Busch took the team's first checkered flag at the track in May. Ty Gibbs took over the driving duties after Busch was sidelined with injuries from a crash. With the owner's championship on the line, the team opted to move Wallace to the No. 45 machine and Gibbs to the No. 23. That switch enabled Wallace to drive for the owner's championship while relieving some pressure on Gibbs as he works to gain experience. Three wins in two seasons of existence and a win in the hunt for the 2022 owner's championship makes this a team to bank on for the remainder of the season.
