Race fans today are used to seeing Kenny Wallace on The Kenny Wallace Show. However, not too long ago, the now happy-go-lucky personality was a prolific race car driver. The veteran might not have won a race in Cup but made a name for himself in the Xfinity Series. He has nine Xfinity wins and 173 top-10 finishes to his name. The now 60-year-old also came close to winning the title in the 1991 season but had to settle for second place.
Advertisement
Wallace’s start in NASCAR’s junior nationwide series came thanks to his brother Rusty Wallace, and a certain Dale Earnhardt. He recalls when he was given the chance to drive in a one-off Xfinity Series race at Martinsville Speedway by Earnhardt and his elder brother.
26 years ago today, @Kenny_Wallace won the 1994 Advance Auto 500 @ Martinsville. pic.twitter.com/oNCbse7ZNj
— Andrew (@Basso488) October 16, 2020
At the time, he drove Earnhardt’s #8 Richard Childress Racing car. He earned a P11 finish on that occasion with Rusty and Earnhardt as his spotters which impressed NASCAR. The following season, he landed a full-time seat with Rusty Wallace Racing. He won the pole during his first race in Daytona and eventually finished in P10.
“That’s how I made it to NASCAR. I had to run a race, NASCAR watched me, NASCAR approved me, and that was Rusty Wallace and Dale Earnhardt Sr. So thankful to those two. I had the two most famous race car drivers in the world at that time. Back in those days, there was nobody, even in Formula 1.” he said.
‘The Hermanator’ as he is often referred to as, has a lot of fans even years after his retirement from racing. The Kenny Wallace Show is one of the most engaging NASCAR-themed shows on the internet right now, complete with Wallace’s cheeky yet informative take on American stock car racing.
Kenny Wallace speculates Hailie Deegan’s uncertain future
Recently, Wallace spoke about Hailie Deegan’s uncertain future on his show. Deegan’s rookie year in the Xfinity Series has not gone to plan as the AM Racing driver has already parted ways with her team. Her future is now as uncertain as it gets.
However, Kenny believes that the 23-year-old will land a seat in one of the two Haas Factory Team entries in the competition next season.
“It’s not official but I think Hailie Deegan’s going to be in a second, they’re (Haas) going to field two Xfinity cars, and I think she’s going to get a chance,” he said. “It’s like everybody, let’s see what they can do in a good car you know, and as far as her not running good in the Truck, well maybe she was in two vehicles that were not up to par.”
Her future is a matter of interest among fans as she is one of the most popular drivers in the junior levels of the sport today. It remains to be seen what the future holds for Deegan.
