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[/media-credit]After competing in the K&N Pro East Series for the past two years, Darrell Wallace, Jr. is set to make his Nationwide Series debut at Iowa Speedway on May 20th.
“I’m very excited,” he says. “Just count down the days until I make my debut. Definately looking forward to it. I love Iowa. Been out there twice now. Definitely had good runs both times out there. Looking forward to getting on the track, interacting with the fans, just giving the team, the sponsors and the fans a good show. Definitely looking forward to it.”
Wallace, Jr. says that his goals for this year in the Nationwide Series are to run up front and finish in the top 10.
“I don’t want to force the issue or anything,” he adds. “Run top 5s, top 10s, have a good run, bring the car home in one piece, make the team, the fans and sponsors proud.”
Wallace, Jr. prepared for this race by testing at a variety of tracks in the Nationwide Series car, including Gresham, Rockingham and Motor Mile.
“Definitely a lot different than what I’m used to,” he says. “Different tire, different motor. It’s all about logging laps. That’s what we did. Had a great time. Learned a lot about the cars. Just kind of really fit in with the team.”
Well some drivers are always looking forward to their next step, Wallace, Jr. never planned out exactly the time he wanted to move up to the Nationwide Series while running for Joe Gibbs Racing’s K&N East team.
“Every series that I join, I just want to run until it was time to move up, until somebody seen me out on the track performing well, kind of picked me up,” he explains. “That’s what Joe Gibbs Racing has done, they kind of put the issue on about running the Nationwide Series. It’s definitely kind of a pressure lifted off my shoulders now, kind of moving up, but also it’s still there. It’s moving up into the top three series in the NASCAR ranks. Definitely going to be some pressure there.”
Joe Gibbs Racing officials made the choice for Wallace, Jr. to make his debut at Iowa as they thought it’d be a good fit, considering he’s made two K&N East starts there already.
In the K&N East Series, Wallace, Jr. has six wins, 11 top fives and 19 top 10s in 25 starts. He will be running the K&N East Series race at Iowa on the Saturday to prepare for the Nationwide Series race.
“Going into Sunday’s race, it will definitely be kind of a little bit easier than jumping out not having any seat time there,” he says. “So it’s definitely going to be fun. That’s what it’s all about. I’ll make sure I go out there, accomplish that goal, see how things play out. Definitely going to have my spotter in my ear, be smooth, relaxed, so it will be good.”
Going into the event, he is going to focus on being there at the end, managing pit stops, not overdriving the car and making sure to find his rhythm to just log laps.
“It’s my first race,” he adds. “I’m not going out there to set the world on fire. I’m definitely going out there to show my capabilities, what I’m able to do on the track and also off the track.”
Building from that, Wallace Jr. is hoping to attract sponsorship to therefore be able to run more races. As many have found, finding sponsorship isn’t easy. But Wallace Jr. feels that he has the team to back him up and just needs to deliver the results.
“I have to show up and be out there ready to deliver,” he says. “Going out there, some races you run good, people see it, but they don’t capture the sponsor. It just takes time. That’s not my job to worry about sponsorship. It’s just about going out there and running up front, doing what I need to do on the track, and even off the track, handling myself well, doing anything I can to get sponsors. It’s all about being patient. Once that right sponsor lands, it will be good.”
As Wallace, Jr. continues to move up the ranks, he will have his JGR teammates to lean on for advice.
“I talk to Kyle sometimes,” he says. “I talked to him at Loudon last year. Hang out with Joey a lot. Me and Brian Scott interact with each other. Even Denny. It’s all good to have that kind of teammate support there. That’s just what helps out the most, is having that backbone going into that race.”
Wallace, Jr. is one of the most successful drivers to come out of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity Program, which is meant to help drivers from diverse backgrounds get into NASCAR in good cars through Revolution Racing.
“With everything the way it’s going now, it’s pretty much up to the drivers being there to deliver,” Wallace, Jr. says of the program. “NASCAR is doing their part. It’s about picking the right drivers, I’d say, being able to run up front. This year it seems like they got a pretty stout field of drivers. It will be definitely tough with Rev Racing there. They’re definitely doing their part.”
