Rusty Wallace
Rusty Wallace
Russell William "Rusty" Wallace, Jr.is a retired American racing driver, and a former NASCAR Winston Cup Champion. Considered one of racing's most well-known and charismatic personalities, he is a member of four of stock car racing's major halls of fame: the National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame, the NASCAR Hall of Fame, the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America and the National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame. He also served as the...
ProfessionRace Car Driver
Date of Birth14 August 1956
CityArnold, MO
This is my final season as a driver and I want to go out being remembered as a winner.
This is all new to me and we had a problem with the radio. Our gearing wasn't right either, but the most aggravating thing was not being able to communicate with the pits.
The guys were really causing a lot of wrecks by extreme bump drafting,
The guys at Callaway have been extremely generous.
It's been a great ride, ... If I roughed anybody up along the way, I'm sorry. I didn't really mean it unless it paid more.
Then, at the end, the lapped cars were really tough to get around on the restarts and that got me way behind,
It's a mystery to me why the track doesn't already have a Nextel event. It's definitely a Nextel Cup track. It's beautiful. It's wide. It's shaped perfect. It's got the grandstand capability. They've proved they can pack them in with a lot of drama and excitement. It's just a fun place to go.
It's definitely, when we talk about Springfield, I feel that it's definitely an important area for me. The track here played a huge role in my development as a driver. I'd race there on Friday nights, then I'd go on to Fort Smith, Ark., and back to St. Louis on a Sunday.
It's Bristol. I love the place. I always have and I always will. I've always said it felt like my home track.
I'm driving better than I have in a long, long time, ... so it does make you think twice. But on the other hand, I've made the right decision. I want to go out on the top of my game, and I'm doing that right now.
I'm going to watch a little of the truck race and talk to a prospective new sponsor,
I'm not going to be merciless. I'll be a little edgy; I'll speak the truth.
I'm not freaking out or anything. I knew it was coming, and I've been preparing for this moment for a long time. I went out with class.
In the past, I've always had New Year's resolutions that we were going to have a better year, we're going to finish higher in the points and that we stay healthy. Now, since I'm not driving the car any longer, I guess I'm going to have to sit back and think up a new resolution of what I want to do.