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Rusty Wallace
Credit -
Ford |
Former NASCAR Nextel Cup
Champion Rusty Wallace announced today that the 2005 season will be
his last behind the wheel of the #2 Miller Lite Dodge Nextel Cup
car.
Wallace, the 1989 Nextel Cup Champion, will retire following the
2005 season, which will be highlighted by a year-long celebration of
Wallace’s career called “Rusty’s Last Call”.
“I didn’t think this day would ever come. I didn’t know what I
wanted to do or how soon I wanted to do it. I just didn’t know,”
Wallace said during Monday’s televised announcement at Daytona USA.
“I want to go out at the top of my game. I want to go out a
champion, a front runner. I’ve won this year. I’ve had a lot of
great runs this year, and I feel like I’m at the top of my game.”
The 48-year old Wallace has 55 career Nextel Cup victories, and
recently broke a 105-race winless streak last April at Martinsville
Speedway.
“Definitely my No. 1 thing as far as my decision was, I’ve
accomplished so much if I just kept going it was just doing more of
the same old thing. I won 55 races, so there’s 56 and 57. Every race
is important and fun to win, but it’s not like your first win.
There’s a lot of things in life I want to do. I want to play more
golf. I want to spend more time with the team. I don’t want to live
in a motorhome every single weekend at a racetrack. I want to grow
the business more. Probably No. 1, I don’t want to get hurt. I don’t
want to push it too far.”
Wallace, who was joined by his parents Russ and Judy Wallace as well
as his wife Patti and their children, Greg, Katie and Stephen, said
his health and safety as well as the death of his long-time friend
Dale Earnhardt, Sr. in 2001, greatly influenced his decision to walk
away from racing.
“You know what? I’ve won a lot of races. I want to have fun in this
sport, and I don’t want to get hurt,” Wallace said. “I think after
Earnhardt lost his life three or four years ago, it kinda got to me.
It made me a little nervous. It made me think hard about it.”
“I’m very concerned about safety, and it bothered me a lot when Dale
got killed because he and I were good friends. He was the guy that
every single time I went to the track I looked at him. There are a
lot of good drivers out there right now, no doubt about that, but he
was the one I always looked up to. He was probably influential in
this decision.”
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Jeff Burton
(Top), Rusty Wallace (middle) and Mark Martin at Talladega
Credit -
Ford |
Wallace began his racing
career running local short tracks near his hometown of St. Louis,
Mo., winning more than 200 stock car features from 1974-78 before
joining the USAC stock car circuit in 1979 where he claimed the USAC
Rookie of the Year title. He later moved up to the American Speed
Association where he won the 1983 ASA Championship.
Wallace ran his first race in NASCAR’s top division, then called
Winston Cup, in 1980 at Atlanta Motor Speedway driving for Roger
Penske. Wallace made a handful of starts before landing his first
full-time ride with Cliff Stewart in 1984. Two years later he joined
the Raymond Beadle-owned Blue Max Racing and notched his first
career victory at Bristol Motor Speedway in his 72nd career start.
Wallace’s relationship with Beadle culminated with the series
championship in 1989. In 1991, Wallace again joined up with Penske
where he has remained ever since.
“Roger Penske, when I first started driving for Roger it was the
most wonderful day of my life,” Wallace said. “When the Blue Max
days were over, I asked Roger if he ever thought about getting back
into NASCAR. He said, ‘hell yeah, let’s go.’ He’s a guy who’s taught
me so much about business, and he’s taught me a lot about life and a
ton about racing. He continues to be one of my best friends.”
“Rusty has been a friend, a partner, a great driver,” said Penske.
“It’s hard to think a great driver says it’s time. That’s the
position of a great driver to say I know when it’s time for me to
move on. That doesn’t mean he’s going to be on a slow walk down
during the next year. We’re counting on a big, big year. We’re
counting on more success this year.”
Neither Penske nor Wallace made any indications of who might replace
Wallace in the driver’s seat of the Miller Lite Dodge, but Wallace
himself plans to be involved in the selection.
“We’ve got a year and a half to make that decision,” said Wallace.
“We’ll look at some guys out there and see what we can do. There’s
been absolutely no decision made on any driver at all.
“Whoever will take my place, that’s definitely going to be a
decision between myself and Don Miller and Roger Penske and John
Erickson. We’ll sit and talk about it. Miller Brewing wants to
continue on sponsoring the car, but they’d like to have a young hot
shot get in it and fill the seat. I told the guys let’s not get
crazy right now.”
Wallace also plans to remain actively involved with Penske Racing
after his retirement, as well as continuing to wear the owner’s hat
with the NASCAR Busch Series team he started this past season.
“I want to hang around the sport more. I plan on staying in the
sport,” said Wallace. “I plan on being very heavily involved with
Team Penske and help grow it and stay in it a long time.
“I’ve got a lot of plans with Team Penske, and we’ll talk more about
it later.”
The author can be contacted
petem@autoracing1.com
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