RELATED: Bubba Wallace’s journey to first Daytona 500 to be featured on Facebook Watch
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The biggest race of his life looming, Darrell Wallace Jr. received some well-wishes from a pair of global icons.
Four-time Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton sent Wallace, entering his first full-time season in the historic Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 Chevrolet, words of encouragement, as well as a follow, on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/LewisHamilton/status/965257305645375490
Then, before Wallace climbed into his No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet for the Daytona 500, baseball Hall of Famer and one-time home run king Hank Aaron phoned him.
RPM’s Andrew Murstein told the SportsBusiness Journal:
RPM owner Andrew Murstein tells @sbjsbd that just before engines were fired he put @BubbaWallace on the phone with Baseball HOFer Hank Aaron.
“Hank wanted to wish Bubba good luck. He said, ‘From one Mobile son to another, always believe in your dreams and anything is possible.'”
– Adam Stern (@A_S12) February 18, 2018
Aaron, 84, broke Babe Ruth’s home run record in 1974 and held it until 2007.
Wallace Jr., the first full-time African-American driver in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series since Wendell Scott in 1971, made his first Daytona 500 start on Sunday.
Hamilton, he of 5+ million Twitter followers, has won the F1 title three of the past four years. A driver’s driver like Wallace, Hamilton has made hints of competing in a NASCAR race in the future.
Wallace Jr.’s journey to the biggest race at NASCAR’s top level is being documented with a behind-the-scenes look on Facebook Watch.
https://twitter.com/BubbaWallace/status/965260674237681665