NASCAR: Top 3 ‘MVP’ candidates for the 2021 season

2021 NASCAR Cup Series “MVP”: Bubba Wallace

In a fair world where it’s “Driver A”, “Driver B” and “Driver C” among the non-playoff drivers, the MVP award probably goes to Chris Buescher.

Austin Dillon’s teammate, Tyler Reddick, made the playoffs while Dillon did not, and Bubba Wallace, despite winning a rain shortened-race, failed to finish inside the top 20 in the standings.

Meanwhile, Buescher had a career year and beat his teammate by 225 points, a gap that would have been considerably higher if not for a disqualification.

But at the end of the day, if there was a legitimate vote among these three drivers, Wallace would be the winner.

And Dillon would probably finish in second place, considering his position in the point standings, with Buescher in third since his success flew under-the-radar.

Isn’t that always how it always tends to work out, though? There is always something to be said for things that go beyond production.

Take this year’s NL MVP award: the player who ranked in ninth place in his own division in RBI won the award for his entire league. “Player A” probably doesn’t win the award, but “Bryce Harper” does.

As for Wallace, not only does he have that first career win to speak of, but he entered 2021 driving for a much-hyped new team with a much-hyped new owner in — well, the GOAT.

He is also Bubba Wallace, and his name has become one of the most well-known names in NASCAR in recent years.

Whether that is for better or for worse is up to you to decide.

While it was an inconsistent year, the ups made far more headlines than the downs. And that generally goes a long way in an MVP vote.

The last time a non-playoff driver won a race was in 2017, when Joey Logano won at Richmond Raceway but failed to qualify for the playoffs on points since that win was encumbered.

Discounting encumbered wins, the last time a non-playoff driver won a race was in 2013, when Denny Hamlin won the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

One key takeaway from Wallace’s 2021 season is that he is becoming a legitimate contender in all the superspeedway races.

He had a top three run in the Daytona 500 before a late penalty (and subsequent wreck) derailed his race, he won his first ever stage at Talladega Superspeedway in the spring, and he finished in second place in the regular season finale at Daytona International Speedway, which tied his career-high at the time. Then at Talladega Superspeedway in the playoffs, he delivered.

Another random yet interesting parallel: despite winning the NL MVP, Harper wasn’t even voted into this year’s MLB All-Star Game. Wallace also didn’t qualify for this year’s NASCAR All-Star Race, nor was he voted in.