NASCAR’s Bubba Wallace Praised IndyCar’s Scott Dixon’s Advice

NASCAR Cup Series driver Bubba Wallace needed some advice before Sunday’s Go Bowling at The Glen 300 at Watkins Glen International Raceway.

He talked to six-time NTT IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon, who gave him some tremendous advice before he finished 12^th on Sunday.

It was not Wallace’s best road course result, but he considered it his best road course race.

“Shout out to Scott Dixon,” Wallace said on pit road. “I actually talked to him this morning about the mental piece of it. It’s hard when you climb in for a road course race and tell yourself you are going to crash, and you are going to suck.

“When you tell yourself that every time, he basically told me, ‘Shut the hell up. I’m here for a reason and trust in myself and I’m here for a reason. Believe in myself.’

“I don’t think I had one lap today where I thought I was going to suck, so that’s good.”

Wallace had all day focus and execution and that has given him a 32-point lead over the Playoff cutline entering next weekend’s cutoff race before the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

“Just executing, really,” Wallace said of his secret to a top-12 finish that has improved his chances at making the 16-driver field for the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. “Thanks Bryon (William Byron) for winning that. Didn’t have a new winner.

“I’m proud of myself. That’s the first time I’ve felt proud of myself on a road course race. I executed and didn’t lose focus maybe one time and that is what you have to do on these road course races. That’s the difference maker. You have to stay on it, especially at these places.

“Hats off to my team for sticking with me and believing with me on these road course races.”

Wallace is 16^th in the 16-driver Playoff field with one race to go in the regular season. Rookie Ty Gibbs is 32 points back and Daniel Suarez is 43 points back.

There are 13 drivers who have won races this season and are locked into the playoff field. Drivers such as Wallace, Gibbs, Suarez, AJ Allmendinger and Alex Bowman can get into the Playoffs if they win the NASCAR Cup Series regular season finale at Daytona International Speedway next weekend.

“We still have one more to go,” Wallace said. “We wanted to maintain our gap and not lose too many, but we gained.

“Hats off to everybody. The effort we put in. Toyota for believing in me. McDonald’s, all of our partners involved. It’s a great day for the 23 team.

“Now, we get to go to Daytona still stressful as hell, but that takes a little bit of the edge off, for sure.”