Bubba Wallace’s NASCAR career is a wild mix of speed, grit, and dodging drama he didn’t start. The guy’s been in the spotlight for more than just racing. He’s been at the center of cultural moments that stirred up noise, often through no fault of his own. Take the 2023 All-Star Race, when his radio was hacked with a hateful message telling him to “go back to where you came from.” NASCAR launched a full investigation, showing just how serious the breach was.

Then there was Martinsville in 2024, where some speculated Wallace slowed down to help teammate Christopher Bell, sparking accusations of race manipulation. Denny Hamlin shut that down, defending Wallace’s claim of mechanical issues, but the rumors flew anyway. Through it all, Wallace has had to navigate a minefield of misinformation, from social media to airport conversations, that’s tried to define him.

Despite the noise, Wallace keeps his focus on the track, where he’s racked up huge moments like his historic 2021 Talladega win as only the second Black driver to take a Cup race, and his 2025 Brickyard 400 triumph, a crown-jewel victory for 23XI Racing. Now, with the 2025 playoffs looming, he’s clapping back at the “fake news” with a bold claim about his mentality, proving he’s ready to let his racing do the talking.

Bubba is done with fake news

On a recent episode of The Teardown podcast with Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi, Bubba Wallace got real about the rumors swirling around him. He shared a story from an airport encounter, “I was in Dallas in an airport with a colleague and a woman started asking what we did. We told her, and she brought your name up and said, ‘That Bubba Wallace—oh, he’s against the white flag.’ That’s not true. We actually have a good relationship with him. He’s very nice.”

Talk about a wild mix-up. Wallace never campaigned against NASCAR’s white flag, the signal for the final lap. What he did push for was the 2020 Confederate flag ban, which NASCAR enacted the next day. That move, along with the garage-stall rope incident at Talladega (later confirmed by the FBI as a garage-door pull, not a hate crime), sparked a wave of misinformation. The Talladega moment, when the entire garage rallied to push his car to the grid, showed the sport’s support for him, but it didn’t stop the online chatter from spinning out of control.

Wallace didn’t stop there, addressing how he handles the noise, “The things I’ve said to myself are way worse than what anybody else could say to me… you can’t win. It’s incredible the lengths people will go to create false scenarios… I haven’t been on Facebook for, I don’t know, three or four years.”

That’s raw honesty. Wallace has been open about the mental toll of being a lightning rod, especially after the flag ban and Talladega rope saga. He’s talked in interviews about stepping back from social media to protect his headspace, leaning on his inner circle instead of engaging with the toxicity. It’s a smart move. Why wade through the mud when you can focus on what matters? His mental toughness shines through, showing he’s not letting rumors derail his drive.

And that drive is real, “At the end of the day… can I not focus on going out and trying to win a championship? No—we’ve got to worry about fake news.” Wallace’s resume backs up his focus. His 2021 Talladega win made history, his 2023 Round of 12 run and 10th-place points finish showed consistency, and the 2025 Brickyard 400 win at Indy cemented his status as a contender. Those aren’t just wins. They’re proof he’s here to compete for titles, not headlines. By calling out the “fake news,” Wallace is drawing a line that he’s done with the distractions and ready to chase a championship with 23XI’s full support.

Wallace names Playoff heavyweights to beat

Ahead of NASCAR’s Cup Series Playoffs, Bubba Wallace has name-dropped the trio of Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, and William Byron as the drivers to beat. The 2025 playoffs kick off Sunday at Darlington with the Cook Out Southern 500, the first of 10 high-stakes races. Fresh off his Brickyard 400 win last month, Wallace locked in his playoff spot and isn’t underestimating the challenge.

NASCAR’s Playoff Media Day, he made it clear 23XI Racing has what it takes, “Absolutely,” he said when asked if his team can win in the playoffs. “Hell, I’m good at winning in the playoffs when I’m not in the playoffs. Like I said, I look at the schedule and there’s a lot of good tracks for us coming up.”

He didn’t shy away from sizing up the competition, “We’ve had speed at almost every track on the circuit for the next 10 weeks, so it just takes that little bit more. It takes beating out the 5 (Kyle Larson), the 24 (William Byron), the 11 (Denny Hamlin).” Wallace knows the road ahead is brutal. Larson and Byron, tied atop the standings, are Hendrick Motorsports powerhouses with a knack for Darlington.

Hamlin, his 23XI co-owner, is the Southern 500 favorite with five wins and an unreal 7.9 average finish there. Wallace’s confidence comes from his own playoff pedigree, think back to his 2023 clutch performances and that Indy win that’s got him riding high. By calling out the big dogs, he’s not just talking a big game. He’s ready to race them head-on, fake news be damned, and make a deep run toward that championship trophy.