Rusty Wallace Racing
Rusty Wallace Racing, LLC (RWR), formerly known as Rusty Wallace, Inc. (RWI) was a NASCAR racing team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, near Charlotte. Owned by former NASCAR Winston Cup champion and commentator Rusty Wallace, the team competed primarily in the Xfinity Series (formerly the Busch and Nationwide Series) with Wallace's younger brother Kenny Wallace and son Steve Wallace.[1][2]
| Owner(s) | Rusty Wallace |
|---|---|
| Base | Mooresville, North Carolina |
| Series | Nationwide Series |
| Race drivers | Kenny Wallace Steve Wallace Jamie McMurray Jeremy Clements T. J. Bell David Stremme Brendan Gaughan Michael Annett |
| Sponsors | Duraflame, Bell Helicopter, Aspen Dental, Jimmy Johns, South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa, Pilot Flying J, LoanMax, 5-hour Energy, US Fidelis, HomeLife Communities / Atreus Homes, Avis, Flatout Flatbread, Top-Flite Golf, Miller High Life, Oakley |
| Manufacturer | Toyota, Ford, Dodge, Chevrolet |
| Opened | 1985[1] (re-opened 2004)[2] |
| Closed | 2013 |
| Career | |
| Drivers' Championships | 0 |
| Race victories | 4[1] |
| Pole positions | 12[1] |
On January 6, 2012, Rusty Wallace that the team would go on a temporary hiatus after being unable to find sponsorship.[3] The team returned to the Nationwide Series with Steven Wallace in 2012 at Richmond for a single race. The team made its final Nationwide Series start in 2013 with Steve Wallace behind the wheel.[1][4][5]
Rusty Wallace Racing continues to operate, fielding super late models for Steve Wallace in the CARS series and NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.[6][7]
Team history
RWI was founded in 1984 as Rusty Wallace's marketing firm. It began fielding racecars in 1985,[1] with Wallace driving the No. 66 Oldsmobile. He won a pole in his first race at Daytona International Speedway, and ran three more races that season, which included two consecutive top-fives. He ran three races in 1986 and 1988, and had four top-tens with sponsorship from Alugard and Kodiak.
Beginning with the 1989 season, Wallace began fielding the No. 36 Cox Treated Lumber Pontiac for his youngest brother Kenny.[2] He would win three poles and had sixteen top-ten finishes, and was named Rookie of the Year in addition to his sixth-place points finish.[2] After a winless 1990, he earned his first career victory at Volusia County Speedway, followed by another win later in the year at New Hampshire International Speedway, allowing him to finish a career-best 2nd in points.[2] In 1992, Dirt Devil became the team's new sponsor, and Wallace had just one win and fell to sixth in points. After Kenny's promotion to the Winston Cup series, the team shut down.
RWI returned to competition in 2004, operating as many as three teams out of its headquarters in Mooresville, North Carolina.[2] Following the 2011 season, the team ceased operations due to lack of sponsorship to run competitively, laying off many employees and selling half of its equipment.[3][4] The downsized team returned part-time for 2012 and 2013, with equipment purchased from Roush Fenway Racing.[1][4]
Nationwide Series
Car No. 62 history
The No. 62 debuted in 2006 as the No. 61 Dodge. It was driven by Steve Wallace, Rusty's youngest son, at Dover International Speedway and finished 21st. It ran another race at Phoenix with Wallace finishing 16th. The renumbered 64 ran only one race in 2007, with Chase Austin finishing 41st at Memphis Motorsports Park.
The team would run full-time in 2008 with the ride originally to be shared between Austin, Penske Racing test driver David Stremme, and road racer Max Papis, but Stremme's consistent top-10 runs put him in the seat full-time, with the exception of road courses, with 5 top-fives and 16 top-10s leading to an 11th-place points finish for him. Atreus Homes and Communities began the season as the sponsor, but soon left. Penske sponsors AVIS and Penske Trucking, and Loan Star Title Loans shared the sponsorship duties for the rest of the season. Stremme's return to the Sprint Cup Series left the seat open, and former Truck Series driver Brendan Gaughan drove the renumbered 62 in 2009 with sponsorship from South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa, before U.S. Fidelis and 5-hour Energy came over to share sponsorship with the No. 66.
Michael Annett, along with sponsor Pilot Flying J, drove the car in 2011, with Gaughan returning to the Camping World Truck Series with Germain Racing. After an arrest for a DUI prior to Daytona, Annett rebounded and finished 9th in points. Following the shutdown of RWR, Annett was released and moved to Richard Petty Motorsports, while the No. 62 team's owners points were given to JD Motorsports.[3]
Car No. 64 history
The No. 64 made a return in 2011 with David Reutimann running 5 races and Jason Bowles driving the car at Michigan, Road America and Watkins Glen.
Car No. 66 history
RWI returned to competition in 2004 with late model racer Billy Parker (son of Hank Parker and brother of Hank Parker, Jr.) as the driver of the No. 66 Dodge Intrepid in NASCAR's Busch Series, with primary sponsor Duraflame. Parker was scheduled to drive in 17 races,[2][8] but after finishing only 4 of 8 races he was released.[9] He was replaced by Jamie McMurray, who won the team's first pole on New Hampshire and later won the team's first race at Darlington Raceway. Rusty Wallace drove in two races as well, finishing in the top-ten both times.[1][9]
In 2005, RWI ran a full 35 race schedule in the NASCAR Busch Series. At the request of Duraflame, who switched to sponsor a Brewco Motorsports entry,[10] RWI's 66 was renumbered No. 64. McMurray shared driving duties with Wallace's former Penske Racing South teammate Jeremy Mayfield, Bill Elliott, and Wallace. Miller High Life Light and Top-Flite Golf shared sponsorship. The next season, McMurray and Steve Wallace split driver duties in the No. 64 Dodge Charger. Top-Flite Golf remained the primary sponsor during McMurray's 20 races, while the Jackson Roscoe Foundation was primary sponsor for most of Wallace's 17 races.
In 2007, Steve Wallace was named the full-time driver of the newly renumbered 66, with Homelife Communities becoming a primary sponsor. Wallace won two poles but finished 19th in points. Reed Sorenson drove the 66 in one race as well. Atreus Homes and Jimmy John's sponsored Wallace in 2008, who had seven top-ten finishes. US Fidelis and 5-Hour Energy sponsored Wallace's full-time run in 2009, with one top five and nine top tens with a respectable 7th-place points finish.[1] After US Fidelis ran into financial trouble, 5-Hour Energy sponsored the team in 2010 and 2011, finishing 10th in points in both seasons respectively.[1] After 5-hour Energy left RWR to sponsor Clint Bowyer at Michael Waltrip Racing in the Cup Series, team owner Rusty Wallace was forced to suspend the Nationwide Series operations and handed the No. 66 owners points to MAKE Motorsports.[4][5]
In 2012, the team ran a single race with Steve Wallace in No. 4 LoanMax Ford Mustang at the Virginia 529 College Savings 250 at Richmond, using the owners points of Jay Robinson Racing. Wallace started and finished in 11th place.[1] For 2013, RWR and Wallace planned to run 10 to 15 races with sponsorship from Richard Tocado Companies, and equipment purchased from Roush Fenway Racing.[1][4][5] The team ended up only running one race, the History 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, with the Steven Wallace driving the No. 66. Wallace started 40th and finished 25th.[4][5]
Sprint Cup Series
In 2011, Rusty Wallace Racing acquired the owner's points of the No. 77 Penske Racing team, guaranteeing Steve Wallace a start in the 2011 Daytona 500. Wallace drove the No. 77 car, which was sponsored by 5-hour Energy, to a 20th-place finish.[1]
References
- Pearce, Al (January 28, 2013). "Rusty Wallace's son to drive limited Nationwide schedule in 2013". autoweek.com. Autoweek. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- "Duraflame And Wallace To Light Up 2004". mrn.com. Dover, Delaware: Motor Racing Network. September 20, 2003. Archived from the original on July 23, 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- Gluck, Jeff (January 6, 2012). "Rusty Wallace Racing Shuts Down NASCAR Teams For 2012 Season". sbnation.com. SB Nation. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- Williams, Deb (May 24, 2013). "Forced Time Off Gave Steve Wallace New Perspective". RacinToday.com. Concord, North Carolina: RacinToday.com. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- Caraviello, David (February 9, 2013). "Revived RWR Learned Lessons From Shutdown". NASCAR. Retrieved February 11, 2013.
- Christley, Jason (February 19, 2015). "Wallace Emerges From Long Night With Win: Fends Off Field To Win Super Late Model Finale At New Smyrna". hometracks.nascar.com. New Smyrna, Florida: NASCAR. Archived from the original on 24 July 2015. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- "JET Partners with Rusty Wallace Racing". jettools.com. Indianapolis, Indiana: Jet Tools. December 11, 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- Kentucky Speedway (November 7, 2003). "BUSCH: Parker, Musgrave kentucky test". motorsport.com. motorsport.com. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- Rusty Wallace, Inc. (July 22, 2004). "BUSCH: RWI Racing driver changes announced". motorsport.com. Mooresville, North Carolina: motorsport.com. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
- NASCAR (January 22, 2005). "BUSCH: Preseason Test: Day one report". motorsport.com. Daytona Beach, Florida: motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 23 July 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2015.