Lewis Hamilton said he is proud of NASCAR’s show of solidarity with Bubba Wallace at Talladega Superspeedway.
On Monday Wallace, NASCAR’s only Black full-time driver, was joined by all 39 other drivers and their crews in a march down pit road as they pushed his No. 43 to the front of the line in the moments before the race. The gesture came one day after a noose was found in Wallace’s garage stall. When the group reached the front line, Wallace climbed out of his car and wept.
Talladega Superspeedway workers also painted “#IStandWithBubbaWallace” on the infield grass before the race, which was postponed from Sunday because of inclement weather.
Hamilton, the only Black driver in F1’s history and its reigning champion, has set up a commission aimed at improving diversity in motorsports at a grassroots level.
Hamilton had sent a message of support to Wallace ahead of the race with a message to his Instagram story. He sent another after the race alongside a picture of Wallace.
He wrote: “So proud of everyone in Nascar for standing together and showing up in the face of adversity and discrimination! This is how it should be as we are one race.”
Wallace had been running near the front in the closing stages of the race and might have had a chance to win with a well-timed caution, but he was forced to put for gas with four laps remaining. He finished 14th.
In an interview after the race, he apologized for not wearing a mandatory mask but said he didn’t put it on because “I wanted to show whoever it was: You are not going to take away my smile.”
“This sport is changing,” he said. “The prerace deal was probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to witness in my life. From all the supporters, from drivers to crew members, everybody here, the badass fan base, thank you guys for coming out. This is truly incredible, and I’m glad to be a part of this sport.”