Mike Wallace toughs it out for top-20 finish in LOR finale

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In: Xfinity Series News

Mike Wallace took a tough path to his 17th-place finish at the final race at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis during Saturday night’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race.

For the practice sessions, Wallace had the No. 01 Cowboys and Aliens movie Chevrolet posting the 22nd and 28th speeds, respectively, early in the day on Saturday. When qualifying ended on the short track, the JD Motorsports entry was lined up outside the 12th row in 24th place.

For the early going, the 1994 race winner pretty much stayed where he started as tight racing was prevalent around the asphalt oval. While staying on the lead lap is of utmost importance, saving your car for the end of race is also of the highest value.

Just as Wallace was making some headway, his first pit stop put a damper on his progress. After coming down pit road, the No. 01 Cowboys and Aliens movie team leapt into action changing tires, adding fuel and making adjustments returning their car to action. However, upon exiting pit road, NASCAR officials deemed Wallace exceeded the maximum allowed speed and thus, he had to come down pit road for a pass through penalty. The time and track position lost forced Wallace to drive even harder than he was to gain and maintain a good running spot.

As the latter part of the race wore on, a slight oil leak was discovered. Although it wasn’t enough to end their night early, it caused another problem forcing Wallace to drive even harder than he already was out there.  The oil was dripping down on the power steering belt knocking it out of service as he entered the turns, making it very difficult for him through the apex of the corners. But, being the veteran he is, Wallace soldiered on and kept his car in contention for a respectable finish.

As some minor mayhem took place near the end of the race, Wallace wheeled his way past the chaos and kept on racing. When the smoke finally cleared and the checkered flag flew, Wallace crossed under it in 17th place. This was the team’s 11th top-20 finish of the season, third consecutive and sixth out of the last eight races. He is 13th in Driver Standings trailing two drivers tied for 11th by just one marker.

JD Motorsports PR

Speedway Digest Staff
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