It’s the final regular-season race at Darlington in 2024. Bubba Wallace, still winless and sitting below the cutline, looked from the outside like a driver carrying the weight of an entire season on one night. He either needed a win or a flawless points day. And early on, it felt possible. He started on pole, grabbed a runner-up finish in Stage 1, and showed flashes of the speed he’d been chasing for months.

But the No. 23 Toyota grew unpredictable, the handling faded, and a late multi-car crash with 23 laps remaining sealed his fate. Wallace missed the playoffs by 27 points and was visibly frustrated. It was the kind of heartbreak that defined his uneven 2024. Yet 2025 tells a different story. As you may have witnessed, there was a calmer, steadier, more complete version of Bubba Wallace. And that’s where Dale Jr.’s take comes in, uncovering the reason behind it all.

A new and improved Bubba Wallace

For Dale Earnhardt Jr., Bubba Wallace’s 2025 turnaround wasn’t just a matter of better cars or cleaner races. Rather, it was the first time he’d seen the driver and the man truly align. And according to Dale Earnhardt Jr., the shift started far from the race track. “Bubba got married and growing family. All of those things, I know there’s more to it. I don’t have all the information. When you watch Bubba, you just see this guy; you see him being able to handle the mental side of it so much better. I think he’ll admit that was something he struggled with for a long time,” he said on the Dale Jr. Download podcast.

Wallace married his longtime partner, Amanda, in late 2022, but it was in 2024 and early 2025, when life finally slowed down enough for him to settle into married life, that things began to change. The couple welcomed their first child, a son named Becks, transforming Wallace’s routine, mindset, and priorities.

Friends close to the couple mentioned how becoming a father grounded Bubba in ways racing never could. Sleepless nights, diaper runs, and family time don’t usually sound like the recipe for competitive sharpness. However, for Wallace, it created a mental reset.

This was evidently seen after the Kansas race, where he was leading until the last lap, until his 23XI owner, Denny Hamlin, bumped into him. The contact led to Wallace hitting the fence and missing out on not only the race win but a playoff spot. However, unlike the previous version of Wallace, he wasn’t sulking or frustrated.

As he explained in his own words, “Now I walk back, like after Kansas, and I was fine, and she’s beside herself. It’s kind of funny.” This change in his mentality, Wallace (and even others) believe, is due to his marriage and the birth of his son. And this, in turn, has translated to his on-track results.

In 2025, Wallace delivered one of the most polished seasons of his career: One win, six top-5 finishes, 14 top-10 finishes, 378 laps led, and an 18.5 average finishing position. Overall, Wallace had an 11th-place finish in the point standings. And that’s the part Dale Earnhardt Jr. emphasized: the numbers were good, but the demeanor was exceptional. All thanks to being a family man now!

Dale Earnhardt Jr wants more consistency from Berry

Coming off Bubba Wallace’s steadier, more grounded rise in 2025, the conversation naturally shifted to another driver Dale Jr. keeps a close eye on: Josh Berry. The Wood Brothers Racing star driver’s season looked nothing like Wallace’s smooth arc. If Bubba found balance, Berry lived in extremes.

TJ Majors kicked it off bluntly. “Josh Berry has had a solid year.” And on paper, that’s true. Berry managed one win, eight top-10s, and three top-5s this year. But Dale Earnhardt Jr. wasn’t shy about calling out the volatility that defined Berry’s 2025 campaign. “Josh did all right. Josh did great, but I mean, they were either amazing or on the hook. I feel like that Josh was like, you know, top a top 12 car, top 15 car every week, but just weird things would happen or, you know, they just make a mistake,” he explained.

And Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s analysis is spot on! If you look at the other side, Berry’s season was marked by a series of costly mistakes and struggles, leading to nine DNFs this season. For instance, during the Round of 16 playoff race at Bristol, his car ended in flames, ending his playoff run.

Earlier, at Darlington, a spin on the very first lap resulted in a collision with Tyler Reddick and significant damage to his car. At Gateway the following week, Berry was spun out by Chase Elliott on lap 35, leading to another early exit from the race. These back-to-back incidents were critical blows that helped eliminate Berry from the playoffs that season.

And these incidents were not limited to the playoffs, but they were Berry’s story throughout the year. Sure, he showed flashes of real speed, but they were unfortunately wiped out by moments that snowballed into DNFs. And that’s where Dale Jr.’s critique hits hardest. The No. 21 wasn’t slow. It wasn’t lost. It was simply unable to stay out of its own way when it mattered most.

“I think that if they can just get where they’re not so hot and cold. The 30ths need to be 15th,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. summed up. As we head into 2026, it’s all about tightening the details, eliminating the chaos, and letting the talent shine without interruption. Because if Berry can turn those heartbreaks into solid finishes, he’s not just a top-12 car. In fact, he’s a playoff driver waiting to happen.