Sam's Town 250 - Stephen Wallace Notes

Stephen Wallace, No. 64 Top-Flite Golf Company Dodge
Sam’s Town 250 Race Advance, Memphis Motorsports Park

Race Info:
Event: Sam’s Town 250 NASCAR Busch Series Race
Track: Memphis Motorsports Park
Qualifying: Saturday, October 22 at 10:35 a.m. ET
Race: Saturday, October 22 at 2:30 p.m. ET
TV Coverage: SPEED Channel – Qualifying Coverage
TNT – Race Broadcast

Top-Flite Racing Fast Facts:
Chassis – Stephen Wallace and the Top-Flite golf company team are bringing Chassis No. 64-05 to the track this weekend at Memphis. This is the same car that Jeremy Mayfield drove to a seventh place finish earlier this year at Bristol.

Busch Series Debut – This will be the first start in the NASCAR Busch Series for 18-year old Stephen Wallace. Wallace has spent most of his 2005 season racing in the Hooters Pro Cup and ARCA RE/MAX Series. In only his third ARCA start in a Penske owned car, Stephen won at Michigan International Speedway becoming the youngest professional event winner in MIS history at 18 years and one day.

Testing 1,2,3 – Car owner Rusty Wallace and his youngest son, Stephen tested at Memphis Motorsports Park in preparation for Stephen’s NBS debut. The first day of the two-day test was spent getting Stephen used to the feel of the car. When it was time to put the pedal to the medal, Stephen ran a tenth faster than dad in race trim.

Being Prepared – Stephen has spent most of his time the past few weeks at RWI Racing, Inc. working on his Memphis car in preparation for his first start. His father has taught him from the start that half the battle to being a good driver is understanding how the car works.

No changes up Top: Steve Darne will continue to serve as interim crew chief for the No. 64 Top-Flite golf company team this weekend at Memphis Motorsports Park.

Stephen Wallace Fast Facts:
In 2004, won the prestigious Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, FL; at 17 years old, he became the youngest driver in the events 37-year history to win the event

Wallace’s father, Rusty competed in the Snowball Derby nine times, but never won. His best finish was second (twice), in 1979 and 1985.

Stephen’s victory in the 2005 ARCA RE/MAX event held at Michigan International Speedway (MIS) came in only his third start in the series and his first start on a track larger than 1-mile.

By driving his Penske Racing Dodge to victory, Steve became the youngest professional event winner in MIS history, at 18 years and one day. This beat the previous record set by Reed Sorenson by nearly four months.

Rusty and Stephen Wallace became the sixth father-son pairing to have won professional events at MIS. Previous families to have accomplished this feat include names such as Andretti, Unser, Allison, Earnhardt and Scheckter.

In 2005, the youngest Wallace has been competing in the ARCA RE/MAX and Hooters Pro Cup Series. In four ARCA RE/MAX starts this year, Stephen has garnered one win, two top-five and three top-ten finishes.

Stephen Wallace on making his first NASCAR Busch Series start at Memphis:
“I'm really excited about running a Busch car for the first time this weekend in Memphis. It's the next step in my racing career; I ultimately want to be a Cup driver and the Busch Series is the next step towards getting there. I'm looking forward to making some laps, gaining some experience and earning the respect of the other competitors. The Busch Series is incredibly competitive. The teams in this series are really tough, but hopefully we can come out of here with a good showing for Top-Flite golf company.”

Rusty Wallace on son, Stephen making his NBS debut at Memphis:
“This is definitely a big step for Steve. He's done a great job on the short tracks and I really feel like he's ready for this. We tested together at Memphis and he ran just as fast, if not faster, than I did. This is going to be a good chance for him to get out there and gain some experience. Hopefully he's going to be able to run all the laps and gain the respect of his competitors.”

Steve Darne on Stephen’s Memphis test:
"I was really impressed with Stephen at Memphis. We spent most of the first day helping him forget how to drive a Hooters Pro Cup car and getting used to the Busch car. And by the second day, he blew us away. He was smooth on the track and in race trim, posted better lap times than Rusty. I’m excited to turn him loose in the car this weekend at Memphis.”