What
started as friendly ribbing and good-natured coaxing from team members on pit
road late last season has resulted in NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace's
return to the driver's seat of Penske Racing's No. 2 Miller Lite Ford -- for an
afternoon.
The
1989 premier series champion will help celebrate longtime sponsor Miller Lite's
upcoming 40th birthday by steering the appropriately retro-colored Miller Lite
car during Thursday afternoon's Preseason Thunder test session at Daytona
International Speedway -- his first time in a Cup car since he retired in 2005.
"It
all started at Homestead I was standing between the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) and 2
(Brad Keselowski) cars joking around and those guys were egging me on to get
back in a car and when Brad got wind of it, he called me up two weeks later and
was serious about it and Roger (Penske) was all for it," the 57-year-old
Wallace told NASCAR.com. "Everyone in the world has been on me to test.
‘Why haven’t you been back in a car?’ This here kind of got me.
"It's
going to be hard not to have a big ol' smile all day Thursday."
Not
only did 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Keselowski, the current driver
of the famous Blue Deuce, pursue the idea of Wallace driving his car, he told
NASCAR.com that couldn't be prouder to share his seat with Wallace, the driver
Keselowski considers largely responsible for the team's title-worthy presence
in the Cup ranks today.
"I
thought it was a great opportunity and obviously there's a lot going on with
the retro scheme to tie in," said Keselowski, who was 5 years old when
Wallace hoisted his Cup trophy and in his first full season of NASCAR
competition (NASCAR Camping World Truck Series) the year Wallace retired.
"I've
got a lot of respect for Rusty and am thankful for what he's done. He pretty
much put Penske's NASCAR program on the board. He's kind of the father of the
Miller Lite racing program and it's a great way for us to reconnect to the
roots of our program and pay respect to him as kind of the patriarch of it in a
lot of ways.
"For
me, it was a no-brainer for him to do it."
Now
as popular a TV analyst on ESPN as he was 55-time winner in the Cup ranks
during a storied 25-year career, Wallace said he expects the experience to be
more than a sentimental adventure around NASCAR's most famous track. He got
permission and blessing from ESPN to make his first laps in NASCAR's
Generation-6 car and sees it as a tangible asset to his work in the broadcast
booth too.
"I
think it'll help my TV stuff and I'll have a more in-depth knowledge of what
the car feels like," Wallace said. "I don't know of any other
analysts that are doing this right now. … I honestly pride myself in the
information I give fans on the air.
"This
will give me an opportunity to validate a lot of the stuff I say on air."
Wallace
said in preparation for the test he had to undergo all the mandatory medical
testing any driver would -- from baseline concussion scans to drug testing --
and even secure a new NASCAR license. And NASCAR confirmed Wallace has met all
its requirements.
"Mike
Helton's pretty pumped up about this, too," Wallace said of the longtime
NASCAR president.
According
to Wallace, crew chief Paul Wolfe wasn't planning on either Keselowski or
Wallace doing any drafting practice in this week's two-day test on the famous
high banks, so Wallace will make a series of single-car runs.
How
many, no one knows yet.
"I'm
going to give the car all I've got and I'm going to learn," Wallace said.
"They're looking for some speed, some comfort. I'm not going there to say,
'Let's change this spring, let's change this shock.' I'm there to gain a lot of
knowledge and have fun with the team. It's not like I'm going there to aid the
team. I'm going to have fun, learn and get back in the seat."
"Brad
will shake it down a couple runs then I'll get in the car and I just may stay
in it the rest of the day," Wallace said with a laugh.
And
that's fine with Keselowski.
"There's
plenty of testing to do and I told him, I'm not too proud to let you in my car
and do some laps, let's do it," Keselowski said. "At the end of the
day, this is about respect and this is my way of showing respect back to Rusty.
He's a Hall of Famer for a reason and I expect he'll get up to speed right
away.
"I
might just go in the grandstands and have a beer and watch."
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