Bubba Wallace has often credited his newborn son, Becks, as the driving force behind his strong season. But after finishing sixth in the playoff opener at Darlington, he also pointed to crew chief Charles Denike as the catalyst for a new mindset that has reshaped his approach.
Their partnership fired off with a win in the 60-lap Duel at Daytona, earning Wallace a third-place start in the Daytona 500. From there, the pair captured the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis and consistently ran near the front, collecting four top-fives and 11 top-10 finishes along the way.
During the post-race discussion, when asked if the shift in his mentality stemmed from the crew chief change, Wallace admitted, “Yeah, I’ll give Charles a lot of credit. He has really been a lot of fun to work with, and I feel like we vibed and meshed really quick. He has my back on a lot of scenarios, and I appreciate that.”
Wallace was quick to acknowledge his former crew chief Bootie Barker too, adding, “Bootie did as well, so none of that is going against Bootie. We’ve continued to have fun at the racetrack.
“That is the main thing I told him when we had our meeting in the offseason. I only have one goal in mind: to have fun. Let everything else sit in its own place. I think he has adapted to that.”
Bubba Wallace on Denike’s leap to the Cup Series
Wallace described Denike’s climb from the Truck Series to Cup as an incredible leap, but said he avoids overloading him with responsibility. Still, when the situation calls for it, Wallace is ready to lean on his new crew chief at 23XI Racing.
For now, though, he believes Denike has adapted seamlessly, allowing him to drive smarter, put together stronger races, and ultimately return to Victory Lane.
“He is incredible at what he does. There is still a lot of room for us to grow, but I’m excited for the future,” Wallace said, praising Denike and clearly very optimistic about what lies ahead for the No. 23 team.
