Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr. will fill in for the injured Aric Almirola at Richard Petty Motorsports and make his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series debut in Sunday’s Pocono 400 Cup race at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway.
Motorsport.com’s Lee Spencer first reported the news Tuesday afternoon.
Aboard the iconic No. 43 Ford until Almirola’s return, Wallace will become the first African-American driver to compete at NASCAR’s pinnacle level since Bill Lester drove two races for Bill Davis Racing in 2006. Lester finished a career-best 32nd in the June event at Michigan International Speedway that season.
Roush Fenway Racing said in a press release that Wallace will transition from the No. 6 XFINITY Series program to the No. 43 Cup team, the organization will suspend its XFINITY Series effort following Saturday’s Pocono Green 250. Roush Fenway and Wallace will continue to evaluate additional potential opportunities for Wallace to run in other XFINITY Series races.
Wallace has driven for Roush Fenway in the NXS for the past two and a half seasons, scoring a career-high finish of second at Dover last spring.
“We are very proud of Bubba and his development at Roush Fenway Racing,” said team president Steve Newmark. “We believe that Bubba has tremendous potential and will continue to excel in NASCAR’s top series. He has been a great representative of our organization both on and off the track and we’ve enjoyed being part of his growth as a driver. Our entire team is excited to see him take the next step in his career and make his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series debut in the No. 43.
“The transition shows the strong collaboration we currently have in the Ford stable,” added Newmark. “We believe this will be a great opportunity for both Bubba and RPM, and will continue to strengthen the overall Ford program.”
Wallace, 23, is currently fourth in the NASCAR XFINITY Series standings. The NASCAR Next alumnus and driver of the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford finished sixth for five consecutive races and six times this season and secured his seventh top-10 run this past Saturday at Dover, where he ran eighth after leading seven laps.
Wallace is a graduate of NASCAR’s Drive 4 Diversity program. Launching his career in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East at age 16, he scored six wins and four poles in 36 races. In three seasons overall, he earned 16 top-five and 25 top-10 finishes.
From K&N, Wallace moved to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with Kyle Busch Motorsports where he posted five wins, three poles, 14 top-five and 26 top-10. His victory at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway in the fall of 2013 was the first NASCAR national series victory by an African-American since Wendell Scott in 1964.
After spending time in the Toyota camp with Joe Gibbs Racing and KBM which included a limited run in the XFINITY Series, Wallace moved to Ford and Roush Fenway Racing in 2015.
In last June’s inaugural XFINITY Series race at the 2.5 Pocono triangle, the Mobile, Ala. native finished 16th. He has two top-10 efforts in trucks, including a track-best of seventh in 2013 after starting fifth.
Motorsport.com also reported a teleconference has been tentatively set for Tuesday at 11:00 a.m.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
