NASCAR: Why isn’t Bubba Wallace testing this week?
By Asher Fair
NASCAR Cup Series drivers are testing the Next Gen car again at Charlotte Motor Speedway this week, but Bubba Wallace again isn’t one of them.
Just over a week after the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season ended and Kyle Larson was crowned champion at Phoenix Raceway, drivers and cars were back on track at Charlotte Motor Speedway testing the Next Gen car that is set to debut in 2022.
This week, they are back at the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) oval in Concord, North Carolina for even more testing.
Must Read. NASCAR announcer takes heat for controversial Bubba Wallace statement. light
The first test day of the week was yesterday, and the second and final test day of the week is tomorrow; today is simply a “cold” day between the two testing days “to allow for better data analysis and planning”, according to NASCAR.
One driver who did not participate in last month’s test is Bubba Wallace, and he also isn’t participating this week.
Wallace wrapped up his first season behind the wheel of the #23 Toyota for the new 23XI Racing team on Sunday, November 7, but it was Kurt Busch, who was confirmed as a second driver for the Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan-owned team for next year, who carried the load for the organization in testing last month.
Busch is doing the same again this week, as Wallace continues to recover from the shoulder surgery he underwent the week after the season ended.
Kurt Busch doing all the testing for 23XI this week. Bubba Wallace told me earlier this week rehab from shoulder surgery Is going well. pic.twitter.com/OoRKgGgaEI
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) December 15, 2021
Wallace certainly didn’t make much out of this surgery ahead of time; it was actually a picture going around of him with his arm in a sling that got fans talking before Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass confirmed why, exactly, he was out.
There are ALL gathered together for their input.., #NextGen 😎 pic.twitter.com/joQHE1j3PP
— Diane (@DianeEarnhardt) November 18, 2021
Naturally, having this surgery the week after the season ended was a sensible move, preventing him from missing any of the season’s 36 races and giving him the maximum possible recovery time ahead of the 2022 season.
The expectation is that Wallace should be ready to get back behind the wheel of the #23 Toyota before the 2022 season-opening Busch Light Clash exhibition race is scheduled to take place at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Sunday, February 6.
Next. Top 25 NASCAR drivers of all-time. dark
The 2022 season is officially scheduled to get underway with the 64th annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, February 20.