The Importance of NASCAR’s First Black Xfinity Driver on Bubba Wallace’s Bewildering Racing Career

Keeping in mind how influence and inspiration play a key role in motorsports, over the years, there have been many greats of the game, but from that list, hardly someone has represented the African-American community. So, for someone like Bubba Wallace, entering NASCAR could be a journey into the unknown. Luckily Wallace had all the inspiration he needed from Bill Lester, the first Black driver to start an Xfinity Series race.

Lester was an agent of change who pushed the needle for a more inclusive and diversified racing environment. He competed in the Cup, Xfinity, and the Truck Series from 1999 to 2007. Needless to say, Lester has been anchoring support for Wallace in his drive to create a space for more diverse opportunities in NASCAR.

Wallace tells the story of him being enamored by Bill Lester

Despite the turn of the 21st century, it is hard to get your head around the fact that Bubba Wallace is the only Black driver to have a full-time seat racing across the NASCAR series. Moreover, he is one of the only two Black drivers to have won a race in NASCAR. Before Bubba won at Talladega in 2021, Wendell Scott was the only Black driver with a win. So as far as representation is concerned, Wallace is carrying a huge responsibility on his own shoulders as well.

Speaking in an interview with Fox’s Bob Pockrass, Wallace talked about how he got inspired by Lester. He said, “Yeah I remember selecting Bill Lester on one of the NASCAR games. I didn’t think about it till you know maybe a year or two ago, how representation matter. Yeah, I’m going to race as Bill Lester, I think that’s pretty cool. But I’ve gotten to know Bill over the last handful years, it’s been a little bit since I’ve talked to him. But he’s a massive supporter of mine so, I appreciate him, he understands it, he gets it and keeps me motivated.”

In the video then comes Bill Lester himself, who then went on to explain how tricky it was for him to be interested in NASCAR during his racing days, due to the lack of Black drivers. “I think it’s really important that representation is something that is out there. In terms of being able to identify with people that look like you and sound like you. That you can just relate to right? So when I saw NASCAR when I was young, I saw drivers that didn’t look like me, didn’t sound like me.”

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The veteran driver also explained how representation matters and how a young Bubba Wallace gravitated towards the sport because of this very fact. He then went on to celebrate the likes of Serena Williams as well.

Bill Lester further explained the importance of representation

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For a sport that has been around for over 75 years, having Wallace as the only black driver on the Cup roster makes you wonder whether it’s an inclusive environment. But then again, the drivers themselves need to bring about that change, and Lester sure did his part. From Lester to Wallace to Caruth, that’s how you grow into a sport and create a space for your community.

“You know, for somebody like Bubba to see me, it was big. For somebody like me to see Willy T. Ribbs race when he did, especially in the IndyCar Series, was big. Willy stood on the shoulders of Windell Scott, right? So representation absolutely matters when you can identify with somebody, it goes a long way (…) We see somebody who looks like us, we’re like, wow, it’s now more of an interest to us.”

Some might argue that Wallace isn’t as skilled or talented as others. But the fact that he is bringing about a change and helping NASCAR break the barrier of the past is an achievement in itself.

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