“Fist down on table, throwing weights around” - Bubba Wallace is ‘back and ready to go’ after disappointing couple weeks

Bubba Wallace has had a difficult couple of weeks. The NASCAR Cup Series driver struggled to get going in Atlanta and then crashed out last week at the Circuit of the Americas.

Wallace told reporters on Friday (March 31) that he is focused on making a return during Sunday's race in Richmond, a week after he appeared to be very harsh on himself over mistakes and problems.

The 29-year-old opened up about how stressful the past couple of weeks have been for him, physically and mentally.

"Slamming my fists down the table, throwing weights around. All within a controlled environment...We're back and ready to go," he said.

Wallace is hoping to qualify for the Cup Series playoffs with a win, like teammate Tyler Reddick did with his victory at the Circuit of the Americas. He is hoping to improve on his one top-five result in the first six races of the season.

While he finished fourth in Las Vegas, his ranking has slipped recently. In the last two weeks, he has finished 27th and 37th at Atlanta and Circuit of the Americas, respectively.

23XI is attempting to establish itself as one of NASCAR's best teams and Wallace was the team's main driver when it launched in 2021.

Kurt Busch joined him in 2022 and scored a victory at Kansas. His season was cut short by concussion symptoms, which kept him out of the playoffs. Wallace took over Busch's No. 45 car after he was unable to compete and even won a race with it.

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Bubba Wallace motivated to move on from COTA heartbreak and regain his confidence

Bubba Wallace was unhappy after exiting the NASCAR Cup Series race at the Circuit of The Americas early on March 26. He had overcooked one of the road course's 20 corners and collided with two other drivers, marking the second weekend in a row with a mistake that resulted in contact. He only finished 10 of the 75 laps.

In his brief post-race interview, Wallace attributed the incident to a "rookie mistake" and even suggested that he be removed. It prompted a week of introspection ahead of the next Cup Series stop.

Wallace's season has been a disaster so far, with three DNFs in six races. while the highlight so far has been a fourth-place finish in Las Vegas in March, his last two results were both crash-related finishes outside the top 25 — 27th in Atlanta and 37th in COTA.

Last week, he stated that he has made an additional effort to rededicate himself to his work ethic and stressed that physical and mental health are tightly linked.