There is a name in the journals of NASCAR that once everyone considered formidable. It is none other than Dale Earnhardt. The senior Earnhardt was a master of thinking outside the box and pushing cars beyond their limits. He was like an unstoppable force that obliterated any and every force that dared to confront him. Needlessly said, a man of such stature will have millions of fans all across the community.
Especially for Bubba Wallace, this name holds a very special significance. In a 2019 interview with Garden and Gun, Wallace threw light on the respect that The Intimidator‘s name held in his household.
Dale Earnhardt Senior: A Wallace family favorite
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Seven-time Cup Champion Dale Earnhardt Sr carved a huge fan following for himself in his throughout his 28-year career in NASCAR. The 23XI Racing driver is one of those fans. A household name in NASCAR, Senior started influencing the #23 driver when he was a child.
When asked by Justin Heckert, “Did you have a favorite NASCAR driver back then?” Bubba had a good answer.
He recalled, “Dale [Earnhardt] for sure. He was my mom and dad’s favorite. I remember racing in Bandoleros and Legend cars when I was ten or eleven years old; we would race at Pole Night, Thursday night, over at the Charlotte Motor Speedway for the [Coca-Cola] 600, and all the Cup teams would be there.”
Racing in front of the stalwarts of NASCAR must have been a big thing for little Bubba back then.
“You’d go race and we’d put on a show, and we’d win a couple of those races and it would be, Wow, we’re doing this in front of all these people. I still didn’t have any dreams of “I want to be at the Cup level one day.” We just did it because we were having fun!”
Now, Bubba Wallace has his own fanbase. Not only that, but being the only driver of color on the grid, he is a part of something much bigger. We have seen him work words inclusivity in NASCAR while supporting movements like Black Lives Matter.
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Last year, 300 studios, Boardwalk pictures and NASCAR productions worked together to launch “Race: Bubba Wallace”, a 6-part docuseries on how Bubba Wallace became an elite name in the annals of NASCAR. This show also includes the aftermath of the racial injustice hurled at him in 2020, just a day before the Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.
A noose was found hanging in the garage stall of Bubba’s car. This insensitive act had many stand with him in solidarity with the #IStandWithBubba motion painted on the tri-oval grass of Talladega. Even “The King” Petty came up and embraced him.
A reporter for NASCAR on FOX said, “When that window net goes up later today, racing is the great equalizer. Everybody’s six foot four, two hundred and forty pounds. Everybody has six hundred horsepower. No one is white, black, brown or yellow. They are all racers and they are all our heroes.”
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It was an emotional moment for everyone, especially for Bubba Wallace, when Billy Mauldin, President and CEO of Motor Racing Outreach inducted the ceremony with a prayer as the national flag of the United States of America flew in all its glory.
Read More: Bubba Wallace Confesses What Gets Him to Sleep at Night Despite Being the Most-Hated NASCAR Driver