NASCAR: Bubba Wallace overrated in fanbase rankings?

Bubba Wallace ranked in the annual FanSided 250 for nothing to do with racing, while NASCAR did not have anybody else, nor itself, on the list. Was this justified?

The fifth annual FanSided 250 went live earlier this week, featuring a compilation of the top 250 fanbases in the world of sports and entertainment. FanSided, the parent network of Beyond the Flag and hundreds of other websites on all kinds of sports and entertainment, put together the list.

NASCAR was completely snubbed from this list last year after ranking in some fashion from 2016 through 2018. In 2016, the fanbase of the sport itself ranked #71.

It jumped to #24 in 2017, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. came in at #17 among sports figures and #203 overall. NASCAR dropped out in 2018, but Dale Jr. stayed following his retirement, coming in at #19 among sports figures and #225 overall.

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Unlike last year, NASCAR wasn’t completely snubbed from this year’s FanSided 250. But considering who was on it and the reason given for why he was on it, that’s basically what it amounts to, unfortunately, when you look at NASCAR for what it is — a racing league.

Their lone representative was Bubba Wallace, who finished in a career-high 22nd place in the championship standings in his third full season of competition.

Wallace, still seeking his first win amid a move to the Denny Hamlin/Michael Jordan-owned 23XI Racing from Richard Petty Motorsports for 2021, came in all the way up at #79, ranking #15 among all sports figures, and he wasn’t ranked for anything to do with racing (their explanation, not mine).

Even Jordan’s new NASCAR ownership wasn’t mentioned in Wallace’s ranking, which should be huge considering Jordan is not only arguably the greatest basketball player of all time but one of the most popular figures in sports of all-time across the world.

First of all, it is worth noting that Wendell Scott, not Wallace, was the first African-American driver to compete in NASCAR, having competed from 1961 to 1971. In fact, he won a race at Speedway Park in Jacksonville, Florida back in 1964. Wallace was the first since Scott to compete in the Daytona 500 when he did so in 2018. Scott last did so in 1969.

Secondly, the whole noose “hate crime” was thankfully debunked. It fortunately turned out to be nothing more than a massive misunderstanding, not an act of racism. But here Wallace is ranked at #79 because of something that basically didn’t amount to anything.

Was NASCAR’s reaction justified? In hindsight, no. In fact, in a normal world, absolutely no, to the nth degree. It was more of a kneejerk reaction. But based on the tensions at the time, it probably was at least worth looking into.

However, did it warrant NASCAR calling a “heinous act” when they knew absolutely none of the facts at that point? No. Never. Especially not in 2020…

Before we go any further, I do want to make one thing clear: this wasn’t the “Bubba Smollett hoax” that it was made out to be by many, and I addressed this from the start. Wallace didn’t deserve much of the backlash he got afterward.

He never even saw the apparent noose. It’s not like he concocted some fake hate crime to generate publicity at an opportune time. But based on the timing, NASCAR simply rushed to judgment when they called it a “heinous act”, and the media took it and ran with it.

But that’s nothing new there.

However, with no facts known, Wallace calling fans “simple-minded” for speculating that maybe it just might not have been a hate crime didn’t help matters either, especially since he never recanted that criticism when it was all proven to be a misunderstanding.

He did, however, admit that it “kind of looks bad”. You’ve got to give him some credit, given that he was catapulted into this undesirable situation from the get-go.

But referring to the act as a “despicable act of racism and hatred”, which Wallace did, and effectively furthering the stereotype (even if unintentionally) that NASCAR’s fanbase is loaded with a bunch of racists also wasn’t the right move — again, without a recant. In fact, he embraces being unapologetic about it.

Now let’s get to why Wallace does have a case to be ranked, but why this was the wrong way of going about it.

What really disappoints me about Wallace’s ranking is this. I can understand him being ranked for the new fans, including the high-profile stars of other major sports, he was able to draw into the sport for reasons other than the aforementioned “noose”.

So why not draw attention to the man he is instead of what he was effectively set up to be based on something that wasn’t true to begin with?

Why not look at the positives?

You cannot look at Wallace, not only as a NASCAR fan but as a human being, and NOT look at the positives.

Like any other driver, he has had to work hard to get to where he is. Focusing on anything else, especially when that “anything else” was based on something that wasn’t accurate (and has nothing to do with racing), does him nothing but a great disservice.

But that’s effectively what this ranking represents.

I mentioned this earlier. The dude is set to drive for Michael Jordan, for crying out loud. THE Michael Jordan. That alone should put any driver in the discussion for a top 250 rank in this list. Maybe not #79, but definitely in the top 250.

Jordan even ranked #49 on the list, and his new NASCAR ownership wasn’t even discussed!

So why even mention the garage pull “noose”? All that is going to do is make those who already don’t take him seriously take him even less seriously — again, for something he had absolutely nothing to do with.

It was debunked flat-out. For lack of a better word, it has become irrelevant. Why make things worse for the man by obsessing over it six months later? All that’s going to do is drum up more criticism. Just look at Facebook, Twitter, etc. whenever he is mentioned. That is not what you would expect to see out of the supposed #79 fanbase.

Finally, with all due respect to Wallace’s top 250 ranking in itself, how do you rank him at #79 — ahead of 171 others — and not have Chase Elliott, the sport’s most popular champion in 32 years, or Jimmie Johnson, the retiring seven-time champion, anywhere on the list?

That alone should put Wallace’s cap at #81, end of story. And there are several other drivers who you could argue should be on there as well.

Again, the list is not all sports-based, but does Wallace really have a bigger fanbase than Elliott or Johnson?

I think the Most Popular Driver Award voting does the talking there for Elliott, and Johnson’s retirement, much like Dale Jr.’s, should have helped him out, especially as a seven-time champion.

Wallace didn’t even win the All-Star Fan Vote, from which Elliott and Johnson among more than a dozen other top drivers were exempt since they had already secured a spot in the All-Star Race.

The All-Star Fan Vote winner was Clint Bowyer, and yes, Bowyer would have won anyway, even had Wallace not crashed in the Open qualifier. I don’t even have to tell you Bowyer didn’t rank in the top 250 — and he probably wasn’t #251, either.

So all in all, I’m not buying it. I get the ranking in terms of Wallace at least being on the list, but I don’t buy the “why?”, considering he is, after all, a NASCAR driver. I certainly don’t buy him being the only representative of NASCAR on the list, and definitely not as highly ranked as he is.