TALLADEGA, Ala. (Oct. 23, 2011) – Mike Wallace joined the No. 33 Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) team climbing behind the wheel of the Anderson’s Maple Syrup Chevrolet Silverado for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Talladega Superspeedway. Wallace started the Saturday afternoon event from the sixth position and with a push from teammate Ron Hornaday, crossed the finish line to pick up first Truck Series victory since 2000.
As the green flag dropped, Wallace paired with Hornaday and the two immediately worked their way toward the front of the field with Wallace moving into the lead on the first lap. The KHI teammates swapped positions as the field sailed around the 2.66-mile track positioning Hornaday out front and Wallace in second, on lap two. As the duo completed their third circuit around the track, they split apart, losing momentum, and slid toward the back of the field.
Wallace was shuffled back into the 23rd position when the first caution of the race came on lap 14 for a multi-truck accident in turn three. During the caution, crew chief Chris Carrier called his driver onto pit road for a fuel-only stop. The visit to pit road allowed Wallace to restart the race on lap 17 in the 14th position.
As the field returned to full speed, Wallace and Hornaday reunited and worked their way back out front by lap 19. With the No. 33 Anderson’s Maple Syrup Chevrolet out front, the duo created a 3.5-second lead over the field when the yellow flag was displayed for a second time on lap 37 for an accident in turn two. Wallace visited pit road for four tires and fuel during the caution and restarted the race from the 10th position on lap 41.
Back under green-flag conditions, Hornaday pushed the No. 33 machine back out front of the field allowing Wallace to regain the lead on lap 42. The race was slowed for a third time on lap 49 for an accident that took place on the frontstretch. Carrier brought his driver to pit road for another fuel-only stop. The quick stop positioned the St. Louis, Mo., native in second position for the lap 54 restart.
As green-flag racing resumed, the No. 2 Chevrolet pulled up to the bumper of the No. 33 Chevrolet and the two-truck tandem moved toward the front of the field with Wallace regaining the lead on lap 55. The two continued to lead the field around the superspeedway until the yellow waved for a fourth time on lap 60 for fluid on the track. On lap 61, Wallace made one last trip to pit road for a final fuel-only pit stop. The quick visit positioned the No. 33 Chevrolet third for the restart on lap 64.
Wallace was shuffled back to seventh during the restart, but quickly found Hornaday and the two made their way back out front by lap 67. The KHI duo began to battle with the No. 3 and No. 18 trucks for the lead when NASCAR officials waved the yellow flag for a fifth time on lap 85 for an accident on the backstretch.
Wallace remained on track during the caution laps, but Carrier continued to remind his driver to conserve fuel. During the caution laps, the leader was unable to maintain speed on track which positioned the No. 33 Chevrolet as the race leader when green-flag racing resumed on lap 86.
The caution lights flashed one final time on lap 90 for debris on the track, leaving the field to battle to the end in a green-white-checkered finish. Hornaday continued to push Wallace around the track as the two headed down the frontstretch on the final lap, giving Wallace the victory, his first win in the series since 2000. The win also gave Chevrolet their first victory at Talladega Superspeedway in the Truck Series.
The No. 33 team will stay close to home when the Truck Series heads to Martinsville Speedway for the Kroger 250 on October 29. Catch the action live on SPEED at 2:00 p.m. ET and MRN at 1:45 p.m. ET.
Thoughts From the Driver – Mike Wallace:
“I have to thank Kevin and DeLana Harvick, Andersons Maple Syrup and everyone at KHI. I am so appreciative that Kevin gave me the opportunity to come out and race this truck. I can’t explain how much this win means to me, it has been so long since I’ve been to victory lane. The teamwork for this event was so incredible because it started back at KHI. There was a plan that started on Monday morning on how we were hoping this race would go, and I’m just so excited that I could have been a part of it.”
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