The latest Brickyard 400 winner at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Bubba Wallace, has recently been turning laps in the Summer Shootout Legends Series alongside Shane van Gisbergen and Scott McLaughlin.
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The Tuesday night events at Charlotte Motor Speedway blend rising talents with seasoned pros, with SVG using the series to hone his left-foot braking, a critical skill in stock car racing. Just last week, SVG finished runner-up to Kevin Harvick’s son, Keelan Harvick, in the SS feature race.
Meanwhile, Bubba Wallace sought extra seat time to fine-tune his racecraft, a move that ultimately paid dividends at Indianapolis. Speaking on the Dale Jr. Download podcast, Wallace explained, “Yeah, so I went back last year to have some fun, and we couldn’t find our way. It was getting frustrating. So, Harvick called me up. And he was like, ‘Hey, come run with us. It’ll be better.'”
After a disappointing showing last year, Wallace believed he could snag a victory in the Legend cars. However, following a poor qualifying effort last week, he decided to skip the Tuesday race. When SVG and McLaughlin voiced their disappointment, Wallace bet that if he won on Sunday at Indianapolis, he would return to the Legend car race on Tuesday.
True to his promise, Wallace revealed to Dale Jr., “I’m a man of my word. I’m going back to race. I text the Legend Car guys. I said, ‘Hey, if it’s not too much, I’m a man of my word. Get the car ready, please.'”
This week, however, Wallace struggled again, finishing P20 and five laps down in the Pro Legends A Feature. SVG, on the other hand, scored his first oval victory, taking the Cook Out Summer Shootout season finale after having started third.
Reflecting on their progress, Wallace remarked that SVG and McLaughlin had adapted to the Legend cars with great ease. He even joked, “It (Legend Cars Race) helped SVG this weekend. The son of a b*tch qualified 11th (at Indianapolis) on oval. He’s figuring it out.”
