USA TODAY International Edition
Bubba Wallace’s ‘ breaking point’
The moment NASCAR’s Wallace realized he should have spoken up sooner about unarmed Black people being killed by police.
During Black History Month, with the series 28 Black Stories in 28 days, USA TODAY Sports examines the issues, challenges and opportunities Black athletes and sports officials face after the nation’s reckoning on race in 2020.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Bubba Wallace was playing “Call of Duty” at home late one night last May, like any other night. Around midnight, he saw for the first time the video of two white men hunting and killing Ahmaud Arbery while he was jogging down a street in Georgia as a third man recorded it.
Wallace, the NASCAR Cup Series’ lone Black driver, had only occasionally spoken publicly about racism and social issues. Still early in his career, trying to win his first race was an all- consuming effort.
Something about that video changed him: seeing arbitrary violence against a man because of the color of his skin. Arbery was 25 – just a year younger than Wallace at the time.
The next day, Wallace’s girlfriend, Amanda, asked if he was OK. He wasn’t. He said he felt a different kind of heartbreak, nothing remotely comparable to losing a race.
“It was just kind of the breaking point,” Wallace told USA TODAY Sports. “I’m seeing everything that’s going on in the world, the innocent killings, and it was just like, ‘ All right, it’s time for me to say something.’ People are asking for my opinion – not that my opinion matters – but they still want to know what the only Black driver has to say.”
Not speaking out sooner about unarmed Black people being killed was a huge mistake, he said, but he thought it wasn’t his place. By the time a white police officer killed George Floyd in late May, Wallace said he could not stay silent. He opened up about his anguish and grief. He didn’t mask his emotions when talking about Black people being killed and shared jarring personal stories of police brutality.
At Atlanta Motor Speedway in early June, he wore a shirt with “I Can’t Breathe” and “Black Lives Matter” written on the front. And the next day – in a moment that ignited a long overdue change in NASCAR – he went on “CNN Tonight” with Don Lemon and called for the series governing body to ban the Confederate flag.
Not two days later, NASCAR did. Just hours after that, Wallace hit the track at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia with a # BlackLivesMatter paint scheme, creating the ultimate juxtaposition – one that seemed impossible for NASCAR before then.
Wallace becoming more vocal about racism and injustice propelled him into the national spotlight, intensified by some things beyond his control. He didn’t ask to be the possible victim of a suspected hate crime investigated by the FBI only a couple of weeks later. He didn’t ask to be defamed with lies on Twitter by former President Donald Trump.
But moments like that amplified his platform, and – with the help of his new team, 23XI Racing, which is co- owned by Michael Jordan and top driver Denny Hamlin – he wants to harness that attention to create change in and beyond NASCAR. The team brings together a young NASCAR talent, a legendary NBA player and owner, and one of the best racers of his generation.
“I really became a household name off the racetrack,” Wallace said. “And it’s just like, all right, we need to balance that out with some on- track success. So looking to do that here with our future moving forward with 23XI Racing.”
Wallace has clear goals for himself behind the wheel of the No. 23 Toyota, with one of the greatest champions in sports history on his side. But with a new team competing together for the first time in Sunday’s season- opening Daytona 500, he’s still an underdog. For now.
Working with MJ
Hamlin first met Jordan at a thenCharlotte Bobcats game in 2009. They developed a friendship – one that includes playing golf – and eventually Hamlin became the first Jordan- brand NASCAR driver.
Jordan, who owns the NBA’s Hornets and grew up in North Carolina, told Hamlin if he ever seriously considered fielding a car, he would want to be a partner.
It happened to come together last summer, just as NASCAR was more explicitly embracing inclusivity, and Jordan was sold on it, Hamlin said.
“This was during a very important time in our sport with social justice issues, NASCAR really making a lot of changes, and Michael wanted to be a part of that,” Hamlin said. “I think he saw it as an opportunity as well to expand his horizon and his following into a sport that, probably, ( it) doesn’t know a whole lot about.”
After three full seasons with Richard Petty Motorsports, Wallace – the Cup Series’ first Black full- time driver since Wendell Scott in 1971 – was set to become a free agent. And “all the pieces of the puzzle fell into place,” Hamlin said.
Jordan’s level of involvement with 23XI Racing has been challenging to determine. He was not made available for an interview, and he has tended to operate silently behind the scenes in his post- playing- career endeavors. But Hamlin said Jordan, who has, at times, been criticized in his career for not taking a stance on social issues, sees a chance to win races and create change within the sport.
For Hamlin and 23XI Racing’s leadership, Wallace has the qualities they were looking for.
Of course, he is passionate about racing and determined to improve his ontrack performance. But for a team looking to shake up the hegemony of the mostly white male sport, 23XI offers Wallace a chance to contend for wins – eventually championships, they hope – while boosting his platform to combat injustice.
Interim team president Steve Lauletta said he was impressed with how Wallace handled himself last year amid controversy and national unrest. He’s eager to see what Wallace can do with top- level equipment, Jordan’s support, some big- time sponsors and a spotlight.
“What makes him special,” Lauletta said, “is how he handles himself by just being Bubba Wallace – being the only Black driver at the highest level of a sport, how he got there, how he developed relationships with partners and with people, the guys on this team.
“He’s just genuine, and that in an athlete at the highest level of their sport – to stay that way and to remain genuine but also dedicated to being the best they can be – is sometimes pretty rare.”
Expectations with new team
Despite 23XI announcing Wallace as its first driver in September, he still hasn’t met Jordan in person. They’re expected to meet for the first time this week ahead of the Daytona 500. But Wallace said they often text, and even if they didn’t, he knows what the six- time NBA champ expects.
“Everybody got a chance to watch ‘ The Last Dance,’ and it was able to show us who he is and how he is as a person and a competitor,” Wallace said last week during a news conference. “At the end of the day, he wants winning race cars, he wants a winning race driver and he took an opportunity to invest in me.”
23XI Racing appears to have the right pieces to be successful in NASCAR’s premier Cup Series, but it’s still unlikely a new team will hit the track and immediately win – though Wallace said winning the Daytona 500 in the middle of Black History Month would be drawn straight out of a “fairy tale.” His best Daytona 500 finish was his first attempt in 2018, when he came in second, marking the highest finish by a full- time rookie driver in the race’s history. It was also the best Daytona 500 finish by a Black driver.
“Getting that first win out of the way is always tough,” said Wallace, who is still looking for his first Cup victory. In 112 total races for Richard Petty between 2017 and 2020, he earned three top- five finishes and nine top- 10s. “We know we’re gonna lose. We’re gonna lose a lot before we win that first one, and so we have to just go out and contend and just grow and show progress.”
But he’s made no secret that his personal goal is two checkered flags in 2021. One win in the 26- race regular season would automatically qualify him for the 10- race playoffs in the fall and give him his first shot at a championship.
Wallace’s new crew chief, Mike Wheeler, who’s also 23XI’s competition director, said aiming for two wins in their debut season is “not unrealistic,” but reaching that level of success takes time. However, he also said Wallace is among the drivers with previously “untapped potential” and just needed a solid opportunity with the right team and top- notch equipment.
Jordan and his business team are taking more of a hands- off approach, Lauletta said, but they’re “learning the sport quickly from the business standpoint” and relying on Hamlin and the racing experts to lead.
But Jordan isn’t staying too far away. “He actually texted me ( two weeks ago) asking about some technical information about the car,” Wallace said. “So I thought that was pretty interesting. It wasn’t just like, ‘ Hey, how we feeling?’ And it was like, ‘ Hey, how’s these cars coming along? What’s the info on them?’ So I had to obviously go back and do my homework.”
NASCAR is changing
As Wallace led the NASCAR garage last year in speaking out against racism and hate, the governing body followed, taking steps to promote inclusivity and welcome Black people, people of color and the LGBTQ community to the sport.
Wallace and 23XI don’t just want to be part of the ongoing change; they want to lead it. While they’re devoted to pushing for equality and diversity in the NASCAR community and beyond, Hamlin said a “core value” of the team is leading by example.
Lauletta said actively working to hire more women and people of color in a predominantly white male industry is a priority of 23XI.
Even in a uniquely money- driven sport like NASCAR where maintaining the status quo could be seen as more profitable, Lauletta said there’s “absolutely” room in racing for activists among athletes.
“We all have a role,” Wallace said. “Every team, every driver has a role in pushing for change and setting up to be the better man in our society today. We could definitely be the catalyst there. We could definitely take the forefront.”