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Bubba Wallace reveals Clash at Bowman Gray paint scheme, fans unimpressed

JHby:Jonathan Howard•01/22/25•

Jondean25

Bubba Wallace
Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports

For Bubba Wallace fans, the Leidos sponsorship has created some of the most recognizable and fun paint schemes for the 23 team. That’s why NASCAR fans are not excited about the scheme revealed for the Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium.

When I think of Leidos and Bubba Wallace I think of colorful paint schemes and that great purple color that they use. So, why is this paint scheme more or less a blank canvas?

Now, maybe this car looks better on the track. That happens. Looking at this graphic released by 23XI Racing, I don’t have high hopes. Too much white space on the hood, the side of the car.

Sponsors wanted the numbers pushed forward to give them more advertising space. Yet, 90% of the time, there is a large, unused space on the door. A white and purple Leidos scheme could be great, but this misses the mark with this Bubba Wallace car.

At times, simple is better. But in this case, it just makes it look like a car lacking in sponsorship. There are ARCA backmarkers with more detail and design throughout their paint schemes than this.

That’s why fans have acted unimpressed, even upset, about this year’s scheme.

“Can we get some actual designs on the car please this is boring looking,” a fan @RPM_Media7 replied. “Love the colors but we gotta do something more.

“It looks bland, his one lacks design,” @alcalderon2507 said. “I prefer more last year’s paint scheme.”

A little too simple, too empty. Why not put a graphic of a moon on the hood behind the Leidos logo to signal the company’s efforts in aerospace? It appears to have that on the side of the car behind the No. 23.

Bubba Wallace coming off of bittersweet season

Despite having a record number of top-5 and top-10 finishes in 2024, Bubba Wallace missed the playoffs and did not win a race. For the 23 team, that’s still a failure on some level. This season, with a new crew chief in Charles Denike, Wallace is hoping to take another step up.

23XI Racing had the regular season champion last year with Tyler Reddick. He also made it to the Championship 4 as well. So, the stakes have only risen in the last year. Making the playoffs isn’t an option.

Denike had a lot of success with Christian Eckes in the Truck Series. He is seen as a rising star among crew chiefs in NASCAR. Having a fresh face and fresh eyes on the 23-car could be just what this team needs to win a race or two and make the playoffs.

Bubba Wallace fans are going to have to wait and see if Leidos is going to run this paint scheme all year or not. Maybe it is just a special scheme for the Clash and a new purple scheme comes out later. In the end, results are what matters, not the colors of the car.