Bubba Wallace "tries to use" Denny Hamlin's part-ownership of 23XI Racing against him on track, says Tyler Reddick 

23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick has claimed that teammate Bubba Wallace attempts to take advantage of Denny Hamlin's ownership of their team while competing on the track.

Wallace remains one of the most polarising figures on the NASCAR circuit. The 30-year-old, who was just the second African-American driver (since Wendell Scott in 1963) to secure a NASCAR win, is highly astute, undoubtedly contributing to his success on the track.

Recently, his teammate Tyler Reddick shared an intriguing observation about the driver and his behavior when going head-to-head with their boss, Denny Hamlin. Hamlin, a Joe Gibbs Racing veteran and 23XI Racing co-owner alongside basketball icon Michael Jordan, is in the 20th season of his Cup Series career, and still in pursuit to clinch his first championship glory.

However, Reddick believes that Wallace, a two-time NASCAR race winner, uses Denny Hamlin's ownership as an advantage when racing the veteran driver. Speaking on a recent episode of Kevin Harvick's Happy Hour podcast, Reddick said:

"I got the feeling pretty early on from Bubba that he tries to use Denny’s ownership in the team against him."

"Well, if you’re in Denny’s shoes, you don’t wanna tear up your own car and you don’t wanna wreck another one of your own cars, right," he added. "Because I feel like he’s aware with how expensive this stuff can get."

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Tyler Reddick on his relationship with Bubba Wallace

Tyler Reddick elaborated on the relationship between himself and Bubba Wallace, highlighting both their similarities and differences in driving styles. He emphasized the importance of teamwork in maximizing the team's performance on race weekends, saying:

"On some weekends, we’re very very aligned on driving style and approach, and others, there’s quite a bit of difference. But on the occasions when we do drive a bit differently, it’s really helpful that the cars are so close."

He added:

"When we know one is better than the other, or someone’s needing the spot more than the other, we do a really good job of just being good teammates."

After five races into the season, Bubba Wallace, who qualified for the playoffs for the first time last season, finds himself 14th in the NASCAR Cup Series standings. He has 94 points to his name.

Meanwhile, Tyler Reddick, continuing his impressive streak of finishes, has secured 130 points and sits in fifth position. He was the runner-up in the Las Vegas race won by Kyle Larson.