NASCAR Cup Series driver set for long-awaited return

After missing all of the offseason NASCAR Cup Series tests thus far, Bubba Wallace is set to return at Phoenix Raceway this week.

As the weeks tick down until the debut of the NASCAR Cup Series Next Gen car in the Busch Light Clash at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Sunday, February 6, and then officially in the 2022 season-opening Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, February 20, NASCAR is set to for another offseason test this week.

Today and tomorrow, the four-turn, 1.022-mile (1.645-kilometer) Phoenix Raceway oval in Avondale, Arizona is set to host a test in which the cars are equipped with 670 horsepower and four-inch spoilers.

Many of the full-time drivers set to compete throughout the upcoming 36-race season are also set to participate in this test.

One of those drivers is Bubba Wallace.

The driver of 23XI Racing’s #23 Toyota has missed all of the offseason Next Gen car tests thus far as a result of the fact that he underwent shoulder surgery shortly after the 2021 season ended at Phoenix Raceway back in early November.

“I had a torn labrum and a bone spur that needed to be taken care of, we’re guessing from wear and tear because I’ve never had anything traumatic happen to my shoulder. … I am sore at the moment. I’m in current rehab situation. So things are definitely different, but all is good. I’m on track and I’ll be ready to roll when the season comes around next year,” he said in a recent interview.

The fact that the 28-year-old Mobile, Alabama native is returning less than two weeks away from the Clash without missing any actual races goes to show why he had the procedure done when he did.

Interestingly, team co-owner Denny Hamlin, who still competes for Joe Gibbs Racing, underwent shoulder surgery right after the 2019 season ended. He not only returned in time for the 2020 season, but he won the season-opening Daytona 500 for the second year in a row and third time in his career. His first Daytona 500 win came in 2016, and that win came after he underwent knee surgery shortly after the 2015 season ended.

As for 23XI Racing, they are set to have new arrival Kurt Busch, who has carried the load for the team through all of the offseason tests thus far, behind the wheel in today’s portion of the test. Wallace is set to make his return tomorrow.

Busch is set to drive the #45 Toyota for the team this year after a three-year run at Chip Ganassi Racing, which ended when Trackhouse Racing Team acquired the team. The 2022 season is set to mark 23XI Racing’s second season in the Cup Series and their first as a two-car operation.