‘Frustrated’ Bubba Wallace lets his feelings flow despite solid start to 2025 season: “I gotta sleep on it”

23XI Racing's Bubba Wallace is off to one of his best starts in the NASCAR Cup Series but was left frustrated after another third-place finish during the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville. The 31-year-old qualified in eighth place and finished behind Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin and Cristopher Bell at the short 0.5-mile oval.

Wallace is now eighth in the NASCAR Cup standings with a lead of 49 points over the playoff cutline. During a post-race interview with FOX Sports' Bob Pockrass, he explained his frustation with the result at Martinsville and compared it to his race at Homestead-Miami.

"You know, I didn't hit the fence and give the lead away here, but I'm still just as frustrated because I don't know what it was that we actually needed to be better, so I got to sleep on it tonight and figure out what we need," Wallace said.

Wallace further commented on his team’s effort for giving him fast cars during the first seven races of the season. The No. 23 team had a top-10 finish at Atlanta and a top-20 finish at the road course in Texas.

Wallace finished third in stage two and was behind leader Hamlin with 83 laps left, when a crash by Joey Logano caused a caution. After the restart, Wallace lost his spot to Bell and had to settle for third place and 42 points at Martinsville.

"When I got to second there, I was like, this is my shot, and of course, came out and so I never really got to see. I was just horrible on restart, so I gave that one to Christopher. Was definitely better than him on a long run, but you just get stuck with this package. So, still need work as a whole as an industry to get this package better," Wallace said (00:37).

Bubba Wallace joined 23XI Racing, which is co-owned by Hamlin, in 2021 and has since won two Cup races. His last win came at Kansas Speedway in 2022.

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Bubba Wallace achieves first back-to-back Cup podium finish

Bubba Wallace matched his best result of the season at Martinsville from his third-place finish at Homestead-Miami. With Charles Denike, the No. 23 team's new crew chief this season, he has scored two consecutive podium finishes for the first time in 262 starts over his eight-year NASCAR career.

Wallace started the 2025 Cup season with a win at one of the duel races before the Daytona 500 but finished the Great American Race in 29th place.

"What a great day. Continuing to rebound from the start of our season. Super proud of our group here at the No. 23 team. McDonald’s Toyota Camry was fast all weekend...But all in all, hell of a day for Toyota. Top three. That’s nice. Keep the momentum going, having fun," Bubba Wallace said (via USA Today).

The NASCAR Cup Series will move to Darlington Raceway this week for the eighth race of the season.