"Bubba Wallace shows you can break barriers" - Denny Hamlin and 23XI Racing honor their driver during Black History Month

NASCAR Cup Series YellaWood 500
Denny Hamlin and 23XI Racing honor Bubba Wallace (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

23XI Racing honored their driver Bubba Wallace during Black History Month for his contribution to NASCAR and motorsports overall.

February is celebrated as Black History Month and 23XI Racing dedicated a video to Wallace. In the clip, three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin also spoke about the difference that Wallace makes on the Cup Series grid.

"Bubba [Wallace] shows that you can break barriers, right? You can enter a sport or a career that maybe you didn't think you had a chance in. Or turn on the TV, maybe someone of your ethnicity isn't prominently in that sport, but it shows that you can go there and you can compete as long as you work hard."

Back during the 2021 Cup Series season, Bubba Wallace won the YellaWood 500 at Talladega to become the second African-American to win a race in the championship. Other than him, it was Wendell Scott.

Wallace also won the 2022 Hollywood Casino 400, which marked his second and most recent victory.


Bubba Wallace on his journey to the Cup Series Championship in NASCAR

Bubba Wallace started his racing career at the young age of nine with the Bandolero and Legends car racing series.

He moved to NASCAR's K&N Pro Series, where he finished in third place in his first season in 2010 and then second place in 2011. In 2013, he started racing in the NASCAR Truck Series with Kyle Busch Racing.

It wasn't until two years later in 2015 that he got a permanent seat in the Xfinity Series with RFK Racing, making his Cup Series debut later in 2017 with Richard Petty Motorsports.

Talking about his career so far, Bubba Wallace revealed that the 'path' he started racing on early in his career was the right one to end up in the Cup Series, eventually. He shared it in the same video, saying:

"I think the path that I was on when I started my racing career was the path to NASCAR. We just happened to end up there."
"We started getting in touch with the right people. Next thing you know, we're getting to the right equipment, climbing the ladder. And here we are, starting my seventh season in Cup."

Bubba Wallace ended the 2023 Cup Series championship in 10th place with a total of 2279 points.

He will be starting the 2024 season at 24th place in the Daytona 500 after finishing the Duel 2 at 11th place.

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