Bubba Wallace became the first black driver to win the 2.5-mile Indianapolis oval. And he made history, yesterday, July 27, 2025, in a dramatic and special event. It was his third NASCAR Cup win, his first in what is considered the “Crown Jewel” of the prestigious race. Rain delays, concerns about running out of fuel, and a fierce charge from Kyle Larson made it all possible for Bubba Wallace to become the first black driver to win the Brickyard 400.
With the win, Wallace secured his playoff spot, reaching an emotional milestone in the NASCAR playoffs, a historic victory in Wallace’s career. He won by just 0.222 seconds, beating defending champion Kyle Larson, who was the defending champion.
Larson was 14 laps and 5.057 seconds behind when the yellow flag came out due to rain, cutting the six-second gap to about three seconds. The cars stopped in pit lane with four laps remaining, giving Wallace an extra 20 minutes to reconsider restart strategy.
Larson lost the race in the second turn, and a crash behind the lead forced a second overtime, which extended the race by another lap and Wallace’s team thought he would run out of gas.
Wallace, without taking a risk, beat the defending champion Larson on the restart. And prevented his fourth victory.
23XI Racing and Wallace made history in motorsport, becoming the first black driver to win a major event at Indianapolis.
Let’s review 23XI Racing in brief.
23XI Racing is an American NASCAR Cup Series racing team, founded in 2020 by NBA star Michael Jordan and NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin. Bubba Wallace is the first major African-American driver. The participation of drivers like Bubba Wallace has given the African-American community greater representation. 23XI Racing is considered a new but influential team in NASCAR.