Jordan to make Cup debut with Wallace
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Bubba Wallace was more of a fan of Michael Jordan from “Space Jam” than watching the NBA.
He was just a kid when Jordan was in his prime with Chicago, so it seemed natural Wallace was more captivated by MJ shooting hoops with Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck than with the Bulls.
Jordan has been a pitchman, an NBA team owner and a tequila connoisseur — and on Sunday, with Wallace at the wheel, he makes his official debut as a NASCAR team owner with 23XI Racing in the Daytona 500.
Jordan and team coowner Denny Hamlin, a three-time Daytona 500 champion, might have more nerves than Wallace on the eve of NASCAR’s biggest race.
“It’s pretty comical,” Wallace said on Saturday. “It’s like their little kid out there racing, I don’t know. I’m like, you guys are nervous, I’m just over here ready to go.”
The 27-year-old Wallace, the only Black fulltime driver at NASCAR’s top level, has answered countless questions about what Jordan was like since the formation of the team was announced late last year.
It was kind of hard to answer: Because of the coronavirus pandemic, Jordan and Wallace had never met. Jordan, who won six NBA titles, hit town this week.
Wallace was in awe when he met the man responsible for leading Tune Squad to their freedom with a last-second win over the Monstars in the 1996 movie. Wallace, Hamlin and Jordan all filmed a promo scheduled to air before the race.
XFINITY: Austin Cindric launched his bid for a second consecutive Xfinity Series title with a win in Saturday night’s season opener at Daytona.
He’s the first reigning Xfinity champion to win the next year’s seasonopening race since 1996.