Bubba Wallace, who drives the No. 23 car for 23XI Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series, remains true to himself when it comes to his personal brand. On the latest episode of Sportico Sports Business Presented by Genius Sports, Wallace mentions how he stands out by not always following norms—he doesn’t work with a clothing stylist, and he doesn’t always show up in the team-mandated clothing.
“Our sport as a whole has a problem … everyone has to be in a black polo, look the same. Just different manufacturer logos, different teams,” Wallace said. So how does he break away from that? “You just show up and not put the polo on … you see me, this is it, and it’s OK.”
Wallace crashed with 13 laps to go in Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway, but he remains eighth in the playoff standings heading into the Round of 12 at the Mobile 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Saturday, Sept. 21.
Also on Sportico Sports Business Presented by Genius Sports, Jimmy Haslam, owner of the NFL‘s Cleveland Browns and the MLS’ Columbus Crew, discusses how he has looked at investing in baseball and hockey teams to round out his sports empire. But he acknowledges how MLB and NHL teams aren’t quite the cash cows that an NFL team is.
Haslam also discusses the Browns’ stadium construction; the new Huntington Bank Field, under construction in Brook Park, Ohio, is expected to open in time for the 2029 season.
Haslam’s Browns are winless on the season so far, having lost to the Bengals and the Ravens. The Crew are 29-13 and currently sit fifth in the Eastern Conference.
Sportico Sports Business Presented by Genius Sports airs monthly on the YES Network and the Gotham Sports App.
