“I’m excited to work with Charles and see what we can accomplish together.” This is what Bubba Wallace said when Charles Denike was announced to replace Bootie Barker as crew chief at the end of last season. 2024 was a tricky season for Wallace. He put up his best statistical season but didn’t manage to secure a single win. To add to his woes, his crew chief of four years, who oversaw his first Cup Series win, was set to depart. Fast forward to 2025 and Wallace has already accomplished his best-ever finish at the Clash with 23XI Racing, and Charles Denike is right by his side.

Bubba Wallace dives into an exhilarating partnership

From the start, Bubba was very clear about his intention with the new season alongside his new crew chief, Charles Denike. This 23XI driver not only seeks wins but also enjoys them. Well, that was apparent as he made his way to the top 5 in the CookOut Clash last night. Compared to the last season at LA Coliseum, where he finished in 12th place with Barker. Now the 32-year-old driver seems much more confident about his upcoming season with Charles Denike.

After the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray, Wallace spoke on his first drive with Charles Denike. “First day I met Charles, he’s been super just on it, and willing to just bust his a— to figure out where we need to be better, and he’s not afraid of telling you, like, I need to do this, and that I’m not afraid to tell him the same thing. So we have a lot to dissect after tonight’s race. I think we’re both on the same page that we were just an average car, and, that’s not okay with either of us,” Wallace said post-race. 

Charles Denike is no new name in the world of motorsports. He comes with around 9 years of experience serving the U.S. Army as an engineer officer and handling responsibility as a Brigade Engineer transitioned into the motorsports arena pursuing his interest. He also acted as a crew chief for the No. 19 Truck Series team, McAnally Hilgemann Racing, where he and Christian Eckes won in eight races across two years.

Wallace’s critical nature of his performance shows how determined he is to succeed after last season. A fifth-place finish after starting in 14th on a short track, where he has historically struggled, is quite impressive. However, he did ruin Brad Keselowski’s race in the process, and apologized for the same, saying, “Yeah, I hate that I got into the No. 6. I didn’t want to get a top-5 finish that way. He was doing everything he was to get down and I got greedy and wanted to fill the hole. I didn’t really think I hit him that hard, but obviously I did. So I apologize for that.”

Wallace continued to talk about the conversations he had with Charles Denike before the race, saying, “I think the first start to our race is really good. I asked him before the race, sitting over here in the pits where we were pushed out. I was like, ‘are you nervous?’ He’s like, ‘no. Not yet. But ask me next, when we go to Daytona’, he probably will be.” Charles Denike joins Bubba Wallace with a plethora of experience under his belt, but the Daytona 500 is one race that gets butterflies in everyone’s stomach.

Bubba Wallace himself is eager to go ahead with this new partnership as he explained, “It’s a massive jump. I think that the more time we spend around each other… And I’m excited… I want to let his wife and kids know that this is a massive commitment. Especially 2025, 38 races, one off-weekend, like it’s no joke.” The NASCAR scheduling is grueling as always, and with a points-paying race scheduled in Mexico City this year, the No. 23 team will have to be ready for all the challenges thrown their way. So far, it looks like Wallace and Denike are on the same page, which is a great sign for 23XI Racing.

Bubba Wallace seems as motivated as ever to take on 2025 and made an honest admission about his woes last season fueling him to succeed.

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Big motives fuel Wallace’s 2025

Bubba Wallace‘s last two seasons have been a massive letdown, and no one knows it better than him. From picking up wins in consecutive seasons in 2021 and 2022, Wallace has now flipped that and gone winless for two straight seasons. Before the Cook Out Cllash at Bowman Gray, Wallace took to X to let his fans know his mentality heading into 2025 and didn’t mince his words.

Wallace wrote, “Excited for this season to get underway. Took it upon myself to be better and do better. Got my a– kicked the last 2 seasons, plain and simple. No shame in saying that. Using it as motivation. I’ve been rocking the “just get by” mentality for too long.” Wallace’s honest and self-critical admission has been reflected in the way he drove at the Clash, not settling for anything less than he deserved with an incredible drive from 14th to 5th.

Bubba Wallace’s positive start to the season will be a sigh of relief after an even worse start to the off-season with the NASCAR lawsuit. 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports are involved in an anti-trust lawsuit against NASCAR. At one point, it looked like Wallace would have to run as an open team for 2025! But all that changed with the preliminary injunction being approved and 23XI back to being a chartered team. Wallace will be determined to do his best on the track while co-owners Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin battle it out in court. What are your expectations of Bubba Wallace in 2025?