NASCAR Playoffs Bubble Battle: Bubba Wallace vs Daniel Suárez
With the NASCAR Playoffs looming on the horizon, it is time to get into the bubble battles going on at the cutline. The points battle is heating up between drivers in the 15th to 23rd positions. This weekend at New Hampshire, Bubba Wallace versus Daniel Suárez is one of the matchups to watch on the track for this week’s Crayon 301.
Even if they aren’t competing for the win, Wallace and Suárez will have another race on their hands. Against each other. Just three points separate the two drivers with Suárez in 15th place overall and Wallace down in 17th. 407 points against 404.
To his credit, Daniel Suárez was a playoff driver a year ago. This is a first-time thing for Bubba Wallace. New territory for the 23 team as a whole.
Before we get into New Hampshire specifically, let’s talk about the season leading up to this point. A little tale of the tape!
On the season, Suárez might have more points, but he has fewer top-5 finishes. With just two finishes in the top-5, the Trackhouse Racing driver boosts his ranking with six top-10s. The real key to success over Wallace is just three DNFs on the season. Suárez has a season-best finish of P2 from the second Atlanta race. In the last five races, he has an average finish of P14.
As for Bubba Wallace, things are slightly different. The 23XI Racing driver boasts four top-5s, five top-10s, and has led 58 laps on the season. However, with five DNFs this year, Wallace has hurt his chances by losing out on points more often than Suárez. Even two fewer DNFs would likely have Wallace in the top-16. He has an average finish of P24 in his last five races.
NASCAR Playoffs Bubble: Wallace and Suárez at New Hampshire
This week, the NASCAR Playoffs battle between these two drivers is at New Hampshire. Neither of these drivers has a ton of experience at the track. The Magic Mile is a Toyota-dominant venue, most of the time. So, what can we expect this weekend?
Throughout his Cup Series career, Bubba Wallace did not perform well at New Hampshire. Wallace has improved his short-track racing over the last few years and even turned his luck around at New Hampshire last season. Despite an average finish of 18.2 at this track, last season was different. Wallace is also listed at 28-1 odds to win.
In 2022, Wallace went into New Hampshire and qualified P4. He followed that up by finishing P3 in a race that appeared to show a glimpse of what we have seen this season.
Meanwhile, Daniel Suárez has two more starts in his career at the track. In those seven starts, Suárez has an average finish of P15. A career-best finish of P6 in his rookie season with Joe Gibbs Racing, Suárez struggled in the following years. After starting P19 last year, the Mexican driver snagged a P9 finish. Suárez is at 35-1 odds to win the Crayon 301.
This is just one NASCAR Playoffs battle this weekend. New Hampshire can turn one driver’s season around. With the history Toyota has at this track, I’d lean on Wallace to outperform his Chevy counterpart. Keep an eye on these two drivers as the race between the two of them will matter almost as much as the race for the win on Sunday.