Bubba Wallace reveals what he told Chase Elliott about speaking up against injustice

Bubba Wallace said he urged his fellow competitors to share how they feel about social issues, and gave a great example to Chase Elliott.

Bubba Wallace, the only black driver in NASCAR’s top series, was one of the very few NASCAR drivers to make a public statement in the days after the death of George Floyd, and told Dale Earnhardt Jr. that he was furious after NASCAR’s most recent race that so many of his competitors chose to remain silent on the incident that has sparked protests across the globe.

During an appearance on the Dale Jr. Download podcast, Wallace said that he urged his peers in a group text to step up and share their feelings about injustice, reminding some of the biggest stars in the sport that they have the platform and power to make a meaningful impact across their fanbases. Wallace revealed the message he sent to Chase Elliott, one of the most popular drivers in the sport, urging the young star to take a stand.

“I wouldn’t want to be the guy that went out and won the championship in a horrible year but never made a comment on the issues we are dealing with in our society…. I get that we’ve got it tough. We’ve got to worry about sponsors. We’ve got to worry about teams and all that stuff. But that has shifted for me. And maybe I’m wrong for thinking like this, but I don’t give a damn what anybody says – I’m going to get my message across and how I feel, and how things should be changed in this world to make it better for everybody to be included. Inclusion is so important. And I’m not worrying about what sponsors think, I’m not worrying about what the team thinks for once. And that’s where maybe people are like ‘it’s just a tough subject to comment on.’ I get that. I get that. You’re white, it’s tough. You don’t understand it.

Still, I told Chase Elliott this…. I texted him last night. I said ‘hey man, you’re the biggest name in our sport right now, bud. Like it or not, you’re the biggest name. And your voice carries over much more than mine in our sport.’ I said ‘don’t be silent on this, please. Don’t let it go under wraps.’ And he was like, ‘I know, it’s tough to comment on, I’ve been trying to come up with something.’ And he said ‘what’s really going to change?’ I said, ‘Chase, I don’t know, but I’m thinking about this. Imagine a follower, two followers that you have. One is a person that is going to go hate somebody, go kill somebody today. And the other one is somebody who is getting discriminated against. Imagine you saying something and both of those people look at that and they’re like ‘wow, that changed who I am today. I’m not going to hate on anybody anymore, and I’m not going to allow to be discriminated against anymore. I’m going to stand up for what’s right. Imagine your words changing somebody else’s life.'”

Though Elliott has not tweeted any statement about Floyd’s death, he did participate in #BlackoutTuesday.

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