DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Bubba Wallace got into trouble early on Sunday during his first Daytona 500 ride for Michael Jordan.
He still came up with another milestone from NASCAR’s marquee battle and became the first black rider to be a lap in the Daytona 500.
Wallace dived to the low point late in the second phase to take the lead on round 129 in the no. 23 Toyota. He lost the lead to two-time defending champion Denny Hamlin, who owns 23XI Racing with Jordan, and ran third at the end of the stage.
Wallace caught on in a fiery, chaotic final round and finished 17th in a race won by Michael McDowell.
“He ran up front and struggled for a stage win. That’s what we want to see,” Hamlin said of Wallace.
Wallace was forced to pass with 22 laps left in the race because he felt a vibration in the Toyota. He dropped off for a while and pushed Hamlin to give his boss and Toyota teammate a slap in the face in a third-straight consecutive Daytona 500 championship.
Hamlin finished fifth.
“We’ve worked together quite a few times,” Hamlin said. “I actually thought he was going to win the second inning.”
Wallace finished second in the 2018 Daytona 500 for the highest finish in the race by a black rider.
Wallace had a solid first two-thirds of Sunday’s rain-delayed race at Daytona International Speedway after a turbulent start in Jordan’s debut race.
Jordan se nr. 23 Toyota failed the inspection twice before the race, asking NASCAR to kick the team’s motorist off the field. The car succeeded with the third attempt, but had to start from behind. Jordan watched the start of the race from a luxury suite.
The six-time NBA champion had his first conversation with the 23XI crew member when he called Mike Wheeler to find out why the team failed the inspection.
Jordan entered NASCAR as the first black head owner of a full-time Cup series in nearly 50 years. He’s stuck with Hamlin and earlier rooted for the Joe Gibbs Racing rider out of the pits.
This venture is no lion for Jordan. Jordan was a child when his late father packed up the car and took the family to NASCAR races on Southern tracks such as Daytona, Darlington Raceway and Rockingham Speedway.
Jordan once said he set his watch to watch NASCAR every week.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Jordan and Wallace have never met until this week. Jordan hit the city the days before the race and of course played golf and had a TV team meeting with Wallace and Hamlin.
“I feel like he’s going to learn how to win. He has the talent,” Jordan told Fox Sports. “We would not have invested in him and selected him if he did not have the talent to win. By the end of the year I think he will have a chance and will probably win at least a few races. If it’s more, I’ll be glad. ‘
Wallace was unbeaten in his first 112 career cup series, and everyone has the no. 43 for Richard Petty Motorsports. Wallace is the only black full-time driver at NASCAR’s highest level, and he raised his profile last summer when he successfully demanded that the series ban the confederate flags’ racetracks. His activism attracted the attention of America, which has raised enough funding through five companies to sponsor the entire Cup season.
The 27-year-old Wallace flashed speed at Speedweeks in the number 23 Toyota – yes, Jordan’s old Bulls number – and was the only workout this week. He qualified sixth before falling on the back of the bag due to problems that came from the pit stop practice.