NASCAR’s Bubba Wallace: ‘I Get Booed A Lot’

One year after his infamous noose controversy, NASCAR star Bubba Wallace admitted that he is still frequently booed by fans who do not like his “woke” ways. This admission follows Wallace becoming the second Black driver to win a NASCAR Cup race. 

Bubba Wallace Says He Gets Booed

“Ever since 16 months ago, everything that went on, Talladega last year with the noose and stuff, the fan perception for me has definitely changed,” Wallace admitted in a new interview this week, according to Sportscasting. “I get booed a lot. I get booed a lot because of everything, the perception of how the noose went down. They think it’s another fake crime, a hoax, and they thought that I planted it because I wasn’t successful, and now they’re all booing me.”

Wallace made headlines last year when he claimed that someone had put a noose in his garage before a race.

When the FBI investigated, they found that it was just a piece of rope that had been there since before Wallace was assigned to the garage, and that it was not a noose at all.

Related: Bubba Wallace Brags How He Made NASCAR Woke – ‘I Pissed A Lot Of People Off’

‘I’m Pissed Off About It’

When asked how the boos make him feel, Wallace replied, “You know, for me personally, I’m pissed off about it, but at the same time I just wanted to go race. It was the same mentality I had when I was nine. I said, ‘I can’t wait to get to the racetrack.’”

Wallace explained that took on social justice issues last year after the deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery. He was instrumental in getting the Confederate flag banned from NASCAR. And, his perspective on life also changed with the pandemic. 

“I just went to go have fun and live my life, and I didn’t notice those things until you had time to notice,” the driver said. “Last year, when you’re sitting home during the pandemic, and during the shutdown, it’s like, ‘Oh s***, this is big.’”

Related: Bubba Wallace Reacts To Legendary NASCAR Driver Being Booed

Bubba Wallace Celebrates Big Win

Wallace was ecstatic last month when he finally got his Cup win. He drives for Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin’s 23XI Racing team that was formed in 2020. 

“Got some credibility to my name now,” Wallace told ESPN after the win. “I’m just like, ‘Finally, I’m a winner and I’m a winner in the Cup level,’ and it’s just like ‘Hell yeah!’ It was a huge weight lifted off my shoulders.”

However, even then he admitted that boos were prevalent for him among fans. 

“It’s definitely been tough going to some of the tracks this year, we get some of the most boos now,” Wallace said. “Everybody says as long as they’re making noise that’s fine, but you know, I get booed for different reasons, and that’s the tough thing to swallow. I appreciate all those who were there doing the rain dance with us, pulling for us, supporting me my whole career, but especially those who have supported me with everything that’s gone on the last 15-16 months.”

After all the woke nonsense that he has pulled, Wallace should not expect those boos to stop anytime soon.