Bubba Wallace May Not Be a Fan of 23XI Racing’s New Partnership Despite Involvement of a Prestigious Name

23XI Racing has proved that if you have a good team in the office, a good crew in the garage, and good drivers on the track, then you can’t help but be successful, or at least, head the way success lives. But another big part of their success has been their association with certain brands and sponsors that make their team so appealing to a wide variety of fans. Recently, they announced one such addition to their sponsors, but it could be one of which Bubba Wallace may not be a fan of.

This is because 23XI recently revealed they’ve partnered up with one of the greatest icons of country music, Garth Brooks and his The Big 615, for the #45 team driven by Tyler Reddick.

No big deal, just one of the most popular country music artists of all time partnering with @23XIRacing.#NASCAR pic.twitter.com/anUB9bRx57

— Daniel McFadin (@danielmcfadin) June 20, 2023

The reason why Wallace may not really be all that psyched out by this addition isn’t that the sponsorship went to the #45 team instead of the #23 team, it would be because he isn’t a huge fan of country music, something rarely seen in NASCAR.

Bubba Wallace claims country music isn’t for him

In an interview from last year, Wallace revealed that his choice of music is the “heavy metal screamo RAWR stuff.” “Some of the best messaging has come from my type of music. I could go on [and] on. Moral of the story is… find something you love that nobody can take from you. Indulge yourself, let it take you away,” he described as per Netflix.

He emphasized that he is into the “metalcore side of things”, a genre in which it’s tough to understand the lyrics right away, but one which also makes him stand apart from most drivers in terms of musical preferences.

“I would say the majority of music taste among drivers is country music, which is fine,” he said. “I like country that sounds like Tyler Childers but I don’t really see him as a country artist. For me, country is like the pop country or the bro country stuff. Sitting there with a beer in hand. I’m not really for that.”

The reason why Wallace prefers heavy metal music, especially before a race

In an interview with Rolling Stone from earlier this year, Bubba Wallace revealed the reason he prefers the heavier stuff in music, and why such music helps him before a race.

“I always say the heavier the song, the louder the song, the better it makes me feel,” he said. “Something about it elevates me to a better place mentally. It gets you pumped up. And when you’re pumped up, that helps everything, especially when you’re trying to get ready for a race.”

Wallace claimed that his go-to way for going through the ups and downs or “the madness of life” is to find an escape. And for him, there’s no better escape than music.

And when it comes to music, there’s no better music for the #23 driver than heavy metal.