Bubba Wallace

William Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr. was born on October 8, 1993, in the United States and is counted among the most influential figures in American stock car racing. At just nine years old, he began his career in Bandolero and Legends Car series as well as local Late-Model races. In 2005, he won 35 of the 48 Bandolero races held, and in 2008, he became the youngest driver ever to win at Franklin County Speedway in Virginia.

In 2010, Wallace entered the K&N Pro Series East through NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program with Rev Racing and became a development driver for Joe Gibbs Racing. He won his first race at Greenville-Pickens Speedway as the youngest winner in series history, with another victory following at Lee USA Speedway; he was named Rookie of the Year and became the first African American ever to receive this award. In 2011, he scored three wins and finished second in the championship behind Max Gresham, before completely joining Joe Gibbs Racing in 2012 and making his Xfinity Series debut that same year. Through stints with Kyle Busch Motorsports in the Truck Series and later with Roush Fenway Racing for Ford in the Xfinity Series, his path eventually led to Richard Petty Motorsports, where he entered the Cup Series as a replacement for injured Aric Almirola and received his first full-time Cup ride after Almirola’s departure.

Wallace has achieved his greatest career successes in both the Truck Series and the Cup Series. In 2013, he won at Martinsville as the first Black driver in 50 years to win a NASCAR national series race, compiling a total of six Truck Series wins and finishing third in the 2014 championship standings. In the Cup Series, he celebrated his first victory in 2021 at the YellaWood 500 at Talladega for 23XI Racing, the second win by a Black driver in Cup Series history after Wendell Scott. A second success followed in 2022 at the Hollywood Casino 400 in Kansas, and in 2025, he capped his career with a victory at the Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis, his first Crown Jewel win. In 2023, he achieved his best overall finish to date with tenth place, and he finished second at the Daytona 500 in 2018 and 2022.

In the 2026 season, Wallace continues as a full-time driver for 23XI Racing, the team where he scored his first Cup victory. The goal remains to build on the strong results of recent years and consistently position the team in the front running.