RUSTY WALLACE NOW A BIG RESTRICTOR-PLATE SUPPORTER
-Recent Talladega Unrestricted Test Was A "Real Eye-Opener" For Miller Lite Dodge Driver-

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (June 29) - Miller Lite Dodge driver Rusty Wallace is certainly not known for being a leading advocate of NASCAR's restrictor-plate racing, now a fixture at the NEXTEL Cup Series' two largest tracks at Talladega, Ala., and Daytona Beach, Fla.

After all, it is this kind of racing that is famous for the three-wide and 12-deep 36-car packs where one wrong move can wipe out a good portion of the field. It's also the brand of competition in which Wallace has starred in the highlight reels as the victim of someone else's mistake.

Remember the spectacular barrel roll crash through the backstretch muck in the 1993 Daytona 500? Or what about the horrendous 16-flip hurtle at Talladega later on during that same season?

So it may sound strange to hear Wallace's comments entering this weekend's Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway, the third of four restrictor-plate races on the 2004 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup tour.

"I may not have thought that highly of restrictor plates before and have actually been a little bit critical of that kind of racing through the years, but the test at Talladega a few weeks back was a real eye-opener," said Wallace, who sits 16th in the NEXTEL Cup points after running out of gas while running fourth on the final lap of last Sunday's road course race in Sonoma, Calif., and finishing 28th. "Let's put it this way - I certainly have a newfound respect for the plates. I see the real need for them now and know why we must use them at Daytona and Talladega.

"When you're blasting down into the corners of a track doing 228 (mph), it's quite a thrill out there by yourself, but it would be a recipe for disaster to think that we could race like that," offered Wallace, who is hoping to pick up his first career Daytona NEXTEL Cup win this weekend in his 43rd attempt on the 2.5-mile track. "Unless they can come up with some other magical solution to slow these cars down, the plates are definitely the only way to go."

Wallace had his taste of the high-speed unrestricted superspeedway pace during a special test session for NASCAR and Racing Radios at Talladega Superspeedway on June 9. While testing for the "Communication of the Future" program, Wallace piloted his Miller Lite Dodge at speeds that reached 228 mph.

"We'd all been wondering what it would feel like to run at Talladega again without the (restrictor-) plates and now I know," Wallace said after making his swift runs that day. "I'll bet we could be running speeds up to 235 (mph) without the plates if we spent time doing some tweaking.

"But I'll tell you this - there's no way we could be out there racing at those speeds," Wallace offered. "It was neat to be out there running that fast by myself, but it would be insane to think we could have a pack of cars out there doing that."

The Talladega opportunity could work to be a big boost for Wallace and his Larry Carter-led Miller Lite Team at Daytona as they focus on bouncing back from last weekend's disappointing road course finish.

"I guess I have a pretty unique perspective about the whole deal because I'm fortunate enough to be the only driver out there today to experience it from both sides - with and without the plates," said Wallace, who is one of only six drivers to compete in every restrictor-plate race dating back to its introduction in 1988. "I'll probably enjoy a bigger comfort factor out there racing with the plates this time around than I've ever had. I can appreciate the plates because I can imagine how disastrous it could be without them."

Wallace's July Daytona race record since the race became a night race back in 1999 is quite respectable. His finishes (in order) include an 11th, a third, a seventh, a second and last year's 27th for a 10th-place average. While he was plagued by crashes there in the early 90s, Wallace has been running at the finish for 14 consecutive races at Daytona.

After racing their PRS-66 Dodge in the first two restrictor-plate races this year, Wallace and crew will return the PRS-58 Dodge to action this weekend. The car debuted at Daytona last July and showed strength before getting involved in a pit road mishap. Wallace's only other points race run with the car produced a ninth-place finish at Talladega last October after running in the top five with one lap remaining.

Wallace's overall Daytona record holds six top-five finishes and 16 top-10 finishes, with all six top-fives and nine of the top-10s coming in the last 14 races.

Qualifying to establish the 43-car starting field for the Pepsi 400 is set for Thursday at 8:05 p.m. Saturday night's Pepsi 400 (400 miles, 160 laps) will get the green flag at 7:30 p.m. EST and features live coverage by FOX-TV and MRN Radio.

Daytona 500-
Daytona Beach, FL

Food City 500
Bristol, TN

Samsung/Radio Shack 500
Justin, TX

Advance Auto Parts 500
Martinsville, VA

Aaron’S 499
Talladega, Ala.

Auto Club 500
Fontana, Calif.

Chevy American 400

Coca-Cola 600

MBNA 400

Pocono 500

DHL 400

Dodge/Save Mart 350