Bubba Wallace Admits He’s ‘Not a Fan’ of New Crew Chief’s Structured Approach

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Kyle Dalton | Last updated Feb 13, 2025 11:50 AM ET

Bubba Wallace is one of multiple NASCAR Cup Series drivers coming into the 2025 season with a change to his team. Crew chief Bootie Barker has been replaced by Charles Denike, who worked with Christian Eckes in the Truck Series for the previous two seasons and combined for seven wins, 25 top 5s and 35 top 10s in 46 starts.

On Daytona 500 Media Day, a reporter asked the No. 23 driver what has been the difference in crew chiefs.

“He's just very direct,” Wallace said of Denike. “He's very attentive to every little detail. And, you know, that's a change of pace for me. I'm not saying that Booty was not. But the way me and Booty operated was, ‘Hey man, I gave you a fast car. You're gonna qualify 15th or 20th, and we'll go kick their ass and race.’ And we'll talk about tractors and bourbon for the next two hours, right?

“(Now) We're all race cars. We're all — you need to do this, you need to do that, and we'll execute the best, and that'll be it. That's how Charles operates. So, a little change of pace for me. It's a little bit more structured and buttoned up, which I'm not really a fan of, but I'm also like, hey, this is a new year, new me, I guess."

While the 31-year-old pilot may not like the new more structured approach, it’s hard to argue about Denike’s results with Eckes. Fans of the 23XI Racing car can only hope that the new style translates into similar success in 2025.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: