Rusty Wallace back in the saddle again

Published Jan. 11, 2014 12:45 p.m. ET

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Something special took place Friday afternoon at Daytona International Speedway that brought together NASCAR's past and present in a unique way. NASCAR Hall of Fame member Rusty Wallace shook off the dust and climbed behind the wheel of a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car for the first time since hanging up his helmet in 2005. 

As part of a promotion for Miller Lite, Wallace teamed up with Brad Keselowski and Team Penske to drive the No. 2 one more time. 

Of course, there was some friendly banter between former rivals Wallace and FOX commentator Darrell Waltrip before hitting the track. 

Once inside the car, the 57-year-old former champion made multiple runs around the 2.5-mile facility, posting some of the fastest lap times of the day. 

After climbing from the car, Wallace was full of smiles. 

"I gotta tell you. I just want to thank everyone back at the shop that made this happen," Wallace said. "Everyone in the Penske organization, Tim Cindric, Roger Penske. I really wanted to get back into the car and get a good feel of this Gen-6 car here at Daytona. Not only did they let me run a couple of times, but they let me run most of the day today and the car is fantastic. It is real smooth and nice and the crew was so kind. I hope I helped them out some. I gave them a lot of feedback. This guy here next to me has been really good to me all week long and I really appreciate it."

The session appeared to be an overall success for Keselowski, Wallace and the entire No. 2 team, with Keselowski tweeting his confidence following the test. Perhaps it was Wallace's imput that made all the difference.

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