NASCAR WCUP: Kenny Wallace excited about return to Darlington

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

March 16, 2001

CHARLOTTE, N.C., (March 16, 2001) – Kenny Wallace’s day at Atlanta wasn’t what he had hoped it would be after securing a one race sponsorship with Williams Bros. Lumber based in Georgia.

Wallace started the race 42nd with a provisional and battled from the drop of the green flag. The Eel River Racing team made adjustments throughout the course of the race but was unable to challenge for the lead.

"What can I say, it’s Atlanta," said Wallace. "I’ve always struggled there. It just seems like me and Atlanta don’t see eye to eye. I guess that’s not too bad though to have one bad track out of 23.

"We got lucky. With two laps to go we had a clutch pack in the motor blow apart. We were able to stay out there and finished 29th. Now it’s on to Darlington."

Going into this Sunday’s Carolina Dodge Dealers 400 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, Kenny Wallace is pretty excited. Over the course of the past decade, Wallace has been successful on the 1.366-mile oval and hopes to build on that success.

"Darlington is a great track for me," said Wallace. "I love the atmosphere down there. It’s a hard track to get around, but I’ve always seemed to like the challenge. I like trying to figure it out."

Wallace has done a good job of figuring out "The Track Too Tough To Tame". He has posted three top-10s and six top-15s in his career and is looking for his first top-10 of the season.

"I have a lot of respect for this track," Wallace continued. "My average finish is 20th so I always look forward to going down there. Darlington is good to drivers who have logged a lot of laps on its track. Once you learn it, you know it.

"If we have a good finish here, we could move up about 10 spots in the standings," said Wallace. "Right now, six points would move us up five spots. It’s incredible to see so many great drivers down at the bottom of the point standings at this stage of the game but that’s how this sport goes."

Text provided by Heather Buckelew

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