Talking Cars, Wins, & Michael Jordan with NASCAR Star Bubba Wallace

This place is packed. The green flag is in the air. What's up guys? Leslie Robbins here for Young Hollywood coming to you from Autoclub Speedway in Fontana. To my right, NASCAR star, Mr. Bubba Wallace. It's so great to be here with you again.

Likewise, thank you. I appreciate it. How are you?

I'm amazing. You are doing great.

I could be better. We could always be better. But I can't complain. It's good.

Let me remind you, the last time you and I were together in Fontana was March 2016-ish.

Oh, wow. Yeah. Been a while.

How did you get your nickname?

I got my nickname Bubba from my sister the day I was born. We really don't know why, uh but it's kind of stuck and it's different so I'm all about being different.

Back in the day, you were a rookie. Yep. Take me back to that year. Your thought process, your emotions within the NASCAR pit.

We're just still trying to find my way through the sport at that point. Uh racing in the Xfinity series. And uh enjoying it. Always love coming out here to California, especially this race track in particular. And uh putting on some good racing. So it's good to be back. You know, it's been two years since we've been back uh as a sport uh because of the pandemic. So it's good to be back in full capacity now.

Okay, you brought up the pandemic. I haven't seen you actually though since 2018. Let me remind you again. The next time you and I hung out for an interview was March of 2018. The Fox set. That's right. Yeah, with uh Jeff Gordon, your chitchatting, right? You had just come off of the Daytona 500. 2018. I don't need to remind you where you came. Finished second.

Yeah.

You finished second. So here we are. This is our third time chatting. It's 2022 and Wow. Something's familiar. Finished second again in the Daytona 500. You finished second again in the Daytona 500.

Yeah. Either I'm bad luck or maybe we should chat before the race.

Yeah, maybe we should chat before to change that up a little bit. So, how are you feeling coming in second again? Your humor on social media amazing.

Thank you. Thank you. Um, you know, a little bit different feeling than the first uh Daytona 500. We we weren't anywhere close to the win, but it was good to finish second. As where this one we were, you know, 36 one hundredths of a second. Um away from the win. So that was tough to swallow, but all in all, uh a good speed week for us. Heck of a way to start off the season.

Yeah. And now, I mean you're how many miles out from Hollywood? You did chemo last night. Yeah, that's right. You got your Netflix show. Yeah. It's raw. It's personal. We're going inside. And you know, topics that maybe one would shy away from. You are the sole African-American driver in the NASCAR series. Yeah. And you're like, I'm standing tall in this and you're letting people in. What made you say, let's open the door on this even more?

Yeah, I think, you know, for me, I've always been a personal guy and you ask me how I'm doing, I'm gonna tell you. And so it was nice to be able to document that and capture everything that we talk about, everything that we go through as athletes and as human beings. And to uh put that into something to where it's um, you know, eye-opening for people to to to be a part of. And I've gotten a great uh a lot of great positive outreach uh after the show and once it's aired and uh it's been good. So I appreciate Netflix and everybody involved for making that stuff special. Um, but uh a lot of good stuff going on for us right now.

You have a lot of good stuff and you're part of a new team with Michael Jordan at the helm.

Yep, 23 11.

23 11. And so I want to ask you how your basketball game is but it's not really about basketball. It's golf. Danny Hamlin. Yep. Three-time Daytona 500 winner. So by the way, you gotta win because you're in good company now.

I know, right. Yeah, it's very competitive over there.

Now, here's the thing. I want to give you more incentive to win a trophy. Yeah. Although you got Talladega. Got you. We had Kurt Busch in studio. Yeah. NASCAR driver here Young Hollywood Studio in 2017 after he won Daytona 500. Yes. He had Earl on the set.

Oh nice.

Okay, so I'm feeling the energy surrounding you for it to happen at some point. I think it's gonna happen pretty soon. And then you come to the studio with Earl.

Yeah, yeah, for sure. We'll make that happen. We'll go anywhere if we win that race.

You're coming to us. Yeah, it's fun. So Bubba, we are surrounded by concrete, road. What better thing to do with concrete and road? You want to do some drawing?

I want to do some drawing. I want I want to see how your artistic talents.

Oh boy. transpire onto concrete. Okay. Got it? What are we drawing?

Well, we're gonna just get down and draw whatever you're feeling. What pick a color. Okay. Maybe your logo or you want me to hold this for you? Uh, let's see. My number, my number in when I was coming up through high school was 76. So I always drew my number. Oh. There we go. There's my number and then you sign it. Bubba 76.

So when Michael Jordan uh you're on a basketball team, you got a number. I got a number. I'm 76. We are obviously amongst the cars. You smell the gas, the energy. You're with Toyota Racing. I see a ton of cars. Why don't we take a walk and show me what you got over here?

Let's do it.

Okay, we're sitting in the Rav4.

Yep.

So we're chilling.

Chilling.

Now, how are you when you're just driving? Like regular, not race car driver.

Uh, I feel like I'm very relaxed, but I'm also very methodical on how to get from point A to point B. The quickest without speeding. Without speeding. Making sure in the right line. Not spending a lot of time distracted. Um, but I like to get there. I'm not a really big fan of driving. I like I like driving fast. Yeah. So if I can, if I have to drive somewhere that's has a little bit of distance, then I'm like, okay, I gotta plan this out.

Okay, here's the question. If I were to go into your car that you drive every day and put the radio on and you left it on the station that you were just last listening to. What is going to be the station?

I don't know about the station because I I can say that out of the cars that I've had in the last, I don't know, 10 years, that I've probably only listened to the radio five times. Straight to the phone. Oh. Yeah. Straight to the phone.

What's on your phone then? So I don't know what the last song I was listening to. What was the last song you were listening to?

Uh, probably probably some metalcore stuff. I can pull it up. Let's see. Yeah. Polaris. A band called Polaris and the song's called Hypermania. So, super heavy.

Well, now that you took your phone out, I have to ask, what was the last picture you took?

We went to dinner last night. Oh. But I got a picture with Amanda. Oh. Wait, what? Yeah, we were at Jimmy Kimmel. Yeah. Yeah, we did Jimmy Kimmel last night and Amanda Seyfried was there and and uh that was pretty cool.

So do you feel Hollywood is calling now?

No, no, no, no. I mean, actually you already picked up the phone and Hollywood's there.

Yeah, yeah.

No, Hollywood. I don't know if I'm ready for Hollywood yet. I still got a few years on that.

You're here though already.

We're here. But see my time like my my time expires very quick here. A couple days and I'm like, I'm all right. I'm good. Ready to go back.

Oh, you're talking the actual location of Hollywood.

Yeah, yeah.

I'm talking like metaphorically, the idea of Hollywood.

Yeah, same thing. Yes, same thing. Yeah, yeah. No, my time expires quickly. No. Yeah. Everything's scripted.

But no, not really. Are those races scripted?

Well, that's not Hollywood.

Well, it's kind of a show, isn't it?

Oh, it is entertainment. Yes. Yeah.

And how do you come down from the entertainment? How how are you like chilling after the race?

Um, try to think about anything besides racing. Yeah. Yeah. Just to get away from it for a little bit. It's nice to have a little break.

And during your break, you're doing what?

Probably listening to music, eating some eating some food and uh chilling with family and the dog.

Polaris. Polaris. What kind of music is that? Like metalcore. Yeah. Is that what you're listening to to get in the mood?

Yeah, that's definitely that's my that's my genre to go to.

Really?

Yeah. Yeah. It's angry. Super angry, but it's it's angry music for happy people.

It's angry music for happy people. And you're always a happy person.

Mmm, most of the time.

Wow. Yeah. I mean, you have this image that you can be angry. But no, you're like the kindest sweetest guy ever.

I appreciate that. Thank you.

Really? Yeah. I mean, is that what fans say? I mean, we're in the fan zone right now.

We are in the fan zone. We got a lot of people surrounding us here.

I know. And so when people meet you, what do they say? That you're very angry. No, I'm kidding.

They're they're they're excited. They're very excited. And uh they're they're pumped for me and good luck. Good luck. Thank you. I appreciate it.