Rusty Wallace Racing officials confirmed today that Steve Wallace will make his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut in the season-opening Daytona 500.
Wallace, 23, will drive the No. 77 Toyota Camry for RWR at Daytona, with backing from longtime sponsor 5-Hour Energy and new partner Aspen Dental. FOXSports.com previously reported that Wallace had secured the locked-in points position of the No. 77 piloted by Penske Racing’s Sam Hornish Jr. in 2010.
Wallace’s debut marks the first time a family will have four competitors that have raced in the Daytona 500, breaking a long-time tie with other famous racing families: Petty (Lee, Richard, Kyle), Allison (Bobby, Donnie, Davey), Earnhardt (Ralph, Dale, Dale Jr.) and Bodine (Todd, Geoff, Brett). The Wallace family has fielded Mike, Kenny, Rusty and now Steve in the event and the family has had a member in 27 of the last 30 Daytona 500s.
RWR general manager Larry Carter will serve as crew chief.
“Starting my first Daytona 500 is definitely going to be the most exciting day of my career — make that my life — so far,” Steve Wallace said. “It’s something that every kid wanting to be a racer — including me — dreams of doing one day. It’s the some of the best drivers in the world competing in the biggest race in the world. I really have to thank 5-Hour Energy and Aspen Dental for making this possible.
“As far as the race, my goals are simple: to stay out of trouble, earn all the respect I can from the other guys and make sure the 5-Hour Energy Toyota is there at the end of the race. The way restrictor plate racing goes, if we can do that, there’s no telling what can happen.”
