“Long overdue”: Fans react as Bubba Wallace all set for major personnel change in 23XI Racing

23XI Racing and the No. 23 team is set for a major change in 2025. Bubba Wallace’s former crew chief, Bootie Barker, will step away from his role at the North Carolina-based outfit. Fans reacted to the news as 23XI Racing dropped the update on X.

Barker and Wallace have been working alongside each other since the latter joined 23XI Racing in 2021. Barker is expected to serve as Wallace’s crew chief at Martinsville Speedway next week and then in the Championship race at Phoenix on November 10.

Following his four-year stint as Bubba Wallace’s crew chief, Barker will continue working with 23XI Racing as a part of the “competition leadership”, the team announced.

“23XI announced that veteran crew chief Bootie Barker will move to a new role within 23XI and continue to work with the competition leadership team at Airspeed following the season finale. Charles Denike, current crew chief of the No. 19 team in the Truck Series, will take over crew chief duties with the No. 23 team following the end of the season.”

Several fans reacted to the news, with one saying that Bootie Barker leaving the team was long overdue.

“Bootie is the man, but long overdue,” the fan said.

“It needed to be done. Bootie's awesome, but he wasn't cutting it anymore. Always falling behind on adjustments and questionable strategy always hurt the team, not help them,” another fan commented.

Here are a few reactions to Barker parting ways with the No. 23 Cup Series team.

“Good. Finally. Bootie has hurt Bubba’s chances recently,” a fan said.

“Love bootie but thank god,” another fan wrote.

“Thank you Bootie! Excited to see what 2025 can bring for the 23!” another added.

Charles Denike, who is expected to replace Barker, started his racing career in 2012 as the team manager of a K&N Pro Series East and an Xfinity Series team under the banner of Precision Performance Motorsports. He moved to GMS Racing in 2016, where he served as race engineer till 2019, before moving to the role of crew chief. In 2022, he joined McAnally-Hilgemann Racing as the crew chief of the No. 19 Truck.

23XI Director of Competition shares his take on Bubba Wallace getting a new crew chief for 2025

Director of Competition at 23XI Racing, Dave Rogers recently shared his expectations for the two-car team for the upcoming season. Rogers also mentioned how integral Bootie Barker’s role has been behind the success of the North Carolina-based outfit.

“Since joining 23XI, Bootie has provided Bubba and the No. 23 crew with the leadership and confidence they needed to grow into the team they are today," Rogers said.

“As we began to look ahead to next season, we decided that Bootie's experience would best serve the organization in a different role based at Airspeed. His input will continue to be an asset to our teams. We're excited to welcome Charles to the organization and look forward to getting started with him at the end of the season. He will be a terrific addition to the No. 23 team and 23XI as we continue to work to be better,” he added.

In a recent statement quoted by Newsweek, Bubba Wallace, who delivered six top-5s and 13 top-10s as the pilot of the No. 23 Toyota Camry, expressed his gratitude toward Barker for his contribution to the team.

“Bootie has meant a lot to me and the No. 23 team," Wallace said. “We've been together for some special moments, and I'm glad he's still going to be a part of what we're building at 23XI. I'm excited to work with Charles and see what we can accomplish together.”

It is with Barker that Wallace got the team their first Cup Series victory (Talladega, 2021) and thus, became the second Black driver to win a race in the series. It was also Wallace’s first win in the NASCAR Cup Series.