Bubba Wallace To Run Nationwide At Talladega

Darrell Wallace, Jr. will make his first NASCAR Nationwide Series start of the 2014 season at Talladega Superspeedway on Saturday, May 3, driving the No. 20 ToyotaCare Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing.  The start will mark the 20-year-old’s fifth-career start in the series.

“We’re excited to be able to provide this opportunity for Darrell in Talladega,” said J.D. Gibbs, president of Joe Gibbs Racing. “He has been doing a great job in the truck series with his KBM team and we want to make sure he continues to gain experience in our Nationwide Series cars as well.”

In his previous four starts in the Nationwide Series, Wallace earned one pole (Dover International Speedway) and three top-10 finishes in 2011. His worst finish in those four starts is 12th at Dover after contact on the last restart late in the race took him out of contention for a top finish. 

“It’s good to be back behind the wheel of a Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Nationwide Series,” said Wallace. “I’m excited to work with Kevin Kidd and all the guys on this Nationwide Series team. I know they have a good Toyota Camry and Matt (Kenseth) has been running it all season long and posted good finishes. Hopefully we can go out there, stay out of harm’s way and add to that by posting a good, strong finish at Talladega for the No. 20 ToyotaCare team.”

Wallace currently competes full time in the No. 54 Toyota Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM) where after two races this season, he has one second-place finish and is eighth in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) point standings.

In his only start at Talladega Superspeedway during the 2013 NCWTS season, Wallace started the race in his No. 54 Toyota Tundra from the 10th position and was poised for a solid finish before being caught in the ‘Big One’ on the final lap exiting turn four. Wallace took the white flag from the fifth position, but once the dust settled from the last lap incident, he was credited with a 17th-place finish. 

Wallace joins Matt Kenseth and Daniel Suarez, who is set to make his series debut at Richmond International Raceway on April 25, as drivers of the No. 20 JGR Toyota in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.