Bubba Wallace drops mic as 'first and only Black F1 driver' Lewis Hamilton delivers bold response to doubters

NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace took to X and reacted to Lewis Hamilton's response to doubters, who compared the 43-year-old to other athletes at age 40. ESPN F1’s official account on X shared the quotes, and Wallace quoted the same as he reacted with a mic drop emoji.

Hamilton last won the F1 championship in 2020, as Max Verstappen took over the pinnacle of motorsports and dominated for the last four years. With the new regulations coming in, Hamilton was beaten in the championship by teammate George Russell in 2022, raising questions about the Briton's competence.

This was followed by the seven-time F1 champion’s comments last year suggesting he's not as quick in qualifying anymore. Nonetheless, as Hamilton made the Ferrari move, he silenced all his doubters with his response. He said, via TIME:

“Don't ever compare me to anybody else. I'm the first and only Black driver that's ever been in this sport. I'm built different. I've been through a lot. I've had my own journey. You can't compare me to another 40-year-old, past or present, Formula One driver in history because they are nothing like me. I'm hungry, driven, and don't have a wife and kids. I'm focused on one thing, and that's winning. That's my No. 1 priority.”

Bubba Wallace reacted to the same on X with:

“🫳🏽🎤”

Hamilton and Wallace are good friends who have supported each other’s actions in the past. The Ferrari driver and the 23XI Racing driver are, respectively, the only drivers of color on the F1 and the NASCAR grid.

Lewis Hamilton left Mercedes at the end of the 2024 F1 season and joined Ferrari. The Briton arrived at Ferrari's Maranello factory earlier this year and posted pictures on social media. Bubba Wallace shared the tweet and reacted to the same.

Bubba Wallace details the new approach following the contract extension signed in 2024

Bubba Wallace has been with 23XI Racing since the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season and signed a contract extension at the end of the 2024 season. A reporter came out and asked him if he's seen a shift in his confidence since signing the contract. The 31-year-old replied, via Frontstrech:

“Well, for sure. I mean, I think the most important thing is I want to be competitive and just have a shot at winning each and every weekend. I have that opportunity now with 23XI. And when I don't win, I look at myself in the mirror and somewhat take the blame for it because all the resources and all the people are there and I didn't get the job done. I think a lot of the stress came from looking at our last two seasons.”

Bubba Wallace ended the 2024 NASCAR season 18th in the championship and has had an average start to the current season, finishing P29 at the Daytona 500 and P9 at the Ambetter Health 400.