Bubba Wallace 'adamant' to get back on track after last year's 'lackluster' Kansas races

Ahead of the 2025 AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway, Bubba Wallace opened up about his recent underwhelming runs at a track where he's previously thrived. The 23XI Racing driver made it clear he's determined to reverse course this weekend, hoping to recapture the confidence and pace that once made him a race winner at the 1.5-mile oval.

23XI Racing has historically performed well in Kansas since its debut in 2021. Wallace earned the team's second-ever Cup Series win at the track in September 2022, while Kurt Busch and Tyler Reddick have also visited Victory Lane here. Wallace's win in the Hollywood Casino 400 came after leading 58 laps, marking one of the high points of his NASCAR career.

NASCAR Cup Series driver Bubba Wallace after winning the Hollywood Casino 400. Source: Imagn

But in the two years since then, Wallace's results at Kansas have stalled. Reflecting on what's changed, Wallace spoke frankly about the team's approach and the toll of changing their proven setup path, before Saturday's qualifying session (via Frontstretch):

"We decided to try something different and it didn't work for us. I myself was very adamant on getting back to where we need to be, when we show up to this place. (Because) when you show up to places that you've had success in, it breeds confidence, right? And when you go into it and you have a lackluster day, like my two races last year were... it hurts a little bit." (10:32 onwards)

Bubba Wallace has an average finish of 13.5 in the intermediate track since 2022; however, since his fall win in 2022, the #23 Toyota Camry driver has finished outside the top 10 three out of four times.

Bubba Wallace remains positive ahead of the Advent Health 400 at Kansas Speedway

Bubba Wallace during practice for the NASCAR Cup Series Advent Health 400 at Kansas Speedway. Source: Getty

Bubba Wallace, who will drive the #23 Columbia Toyota on Sunday's AdventHealth 400, didn't downplay the impact of the recent Kansas performances. Particularly after experiencing the high of winning there just two years ago, he remained hopeful in the pre-qualification press meet:

"I hope we fire off today where we want to be. Back to how it was. But you never know. Nothing's ever the same. No matter how good you have it going, you always have to continue to evolve, and somewhere we got off the path. But we'll hopefully get it back." (11:00 onwards)

23XI's overall record at Kansas supports Wallace’s optimism. Across just five seasons, 23XI has now earned three Cup wins at the track with three different drivers in their 14 starts. He also discussed the struggles of fielding a fourth car in the team's brief history, with Corey Heim at the helm.

For Sunday’s AdventHealth 400, Wallace will start 15th. His teammates, Tyler Reddick (fourth), Riley Herbst (25th), and Corey Heim (28th) round out the four-car lineup for 23XI's first full-field effort in a Cup Series race.

Meanwhile, Kyle Larson clinched the top spot, beating Chris Buescher by 0.057 seconds, a notably wider margin than the microscopic 0.001-second difference between the two at Kansas last spring. Christopher Bell clocked the third-fastest lap at 183.268 mph, narrowly missing out on a fourth consecutive Kansas pole.