Bubba Wallace Brands Jimmie Johnson as His “Great Mentor and Friend”

23XI Racing star driver Bubba Wallace asserted that he sees seven times Cup champion Jimmie Johnson as his mentor.

Bubba Wallace Brands Jimmie Johnson as His “Great Mentor and Friend”

Bubba Wallace and Jimmie Johnson (Via IMAGO)

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23XI Racing star driver Bubba Wallace has been racing in the top tier for over nine years, and has established himself as one of the biggest stars in the sport. These years has also witnessed massive increase in his form, and seven times Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson deserves some credit for his rise.  

Bubba Wallace grew up watching Jimmie Johnson dominate the sport and it was his dream to drive alongside the Hendrick Motorsports champion. Recently when asked about his childhood racing heroes and NASCAR dreams, he recalled the first moment he found himself racing alongside JJ, with his close friend Ryan Blaney besides him as well.  

Yeah, I remember filling in and running the Daytona July race and it was cool racing Jimmie (Johnson). I remember it was like Jimmie (Johnson), (Ryan) Blaney, me and (Corey) LaJoie kind of all right there together at one point and I was like, ‘Damn, that’s pretty cool racing against seven-time.’

Bubba Wallace said via Speedway Media.

He is still racing against the veteran, who is now his Toyota teammate following the Hall of Famer’s team Legacy Motor Club’s move to the TRD garage. Over the years JJ has been a great mentor and a good friend to talk to for anyone in the garage. The veteran being an all-over good dude played a significant role in the close relation they have established over the years.

I think I even said that over the radio.  And so, to be able to race against him a handful of years was cool. He’s been a great mentor and a friend for me. Just a guy to just have a natural conversation with. He’s a lot of fun to be around. He’s an all-around good dude. I think we all know that in this room.

Bubba Wallace added.

Bubba Wallace shares his thoughts on potentially winning a playoff race in 2025

During the same conversation, the veteran racer was also asked about his chances of winning a race in the playoff, as he has never won as a last-16 racer. Considering the tracks that are coming in the playoffs as well as the fine form he is in, the No:23 team is closer to a second win in 2025 than they have ever been.

Bubba Wallace
Bubba Wallace (Via IMAGO)

Absolutely. 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. We’ve had speed at almost every track on the circuit for the next 10 weeks, so it just takes that little bit more.

Bubba Wallace said.

But it won’t be easy as he is going against the likes of Kyle Larson, William Byron alongside his boss Denny Hamlin. If he doesn’t have a day with perfect execution or extra speed advantage, it will be almost impossible for the 23XI driver to win a race.

It takes beating out the 5 (Kyle Larson), the 24 (William Byron), the 11 (Denny Hamlin). It takes beating the other 15 guys you’re racing against to do that. And, yes, we’ve had the speed to do that. We’ve got to clean up the execution standpoint and go capitalize on that.

Bubba Wallace added.

The TRD driver knows the challenges ahead of him at the moment in the playoffs and he should use the wisdom he gained from his mentor Jimmie Johnson to find an advantage to win races. It would be interesting to see how everything is going to playout for No:23 Toyota driver in the coming years.

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