WALLACE & "MAD MAX" TAKE ONE FINAL RIDE AT ATLANTA

-Miller Lite Team Penske Looks For Strong Finish In NAPA 500-

HAMPTON, Ga. (Nov. 13)

-- Miller Lite Team Penske driver Rusty Wallace and his winning ride named "Mad Max" team together for the last time this season; and possibly forever; in this weekend's NAPA 500 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway.

"We're coming to Atlanta looking to get all we can out of it," Wallace, a two-time Atlanta race winner, said. "Winning the race and getting the most points possible ? those are the things weighing heaviest on our minds going into this weekend ? and I guess it's only appropriate to be using the most successful car in our stable.

"The guys back in the shop have a brand new race-ready intermediate car that's just itchin' to get out on the race track, so we really don't know what the future of this car holds," Wallace said of the "PC-25" Ford Taurus that is now known as "Mad Max." "The way this sport goes, you have to continuously strive to get more and more competitive. We're always looking for the strongest race car we can have under us."

Wallace's Atlanta car debuted as Wallace's "PC-25" in the May 2000 Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway and has been used in all the points-paying events at LMS, Michigan and Atlanta since. It received it's name after winning the August 2000 Pepsi 400 at Michigan.

"A lot has been made of this car and many of the fans hold it up there with the other famous cars we've had like "Midnight," "Midnight Rider," "Killer," "Banker," and the list goes on and on," Wallace said. "This was a great race car from the very beginning. We ran it in Charlotte last year and then took it to Indy for the Brickyard 400. After leading that race all day long (led four times for 110 of the 160 laps) and having to settle for second, I was madder than hell. We took the thing back to Michigan the very next (oval track) race and it performed to the
very 'max." So, we named it 'Mad Max" in Victory Lane and.like they say.the rest is history."

Wallace also raced "Mad Max" to a win in the April 29 event at
California Speedway this year.

"Now that was a big, big win for the car.and especially for how it
helped us," Wallace said. "That win meant that we kept our winning streak alive another year. We're now up to 16 straight winning seasons and that means so much to us. That's a feather in our cap that nobody else comes close to."

Entering this weekend, the car's overall record sports two wins, four top-five finishes and eight top-10 finishes in 13 races. It has led laps in seven races and led the most laps in three of those races. Wallace used the car in the August 19 Michigan race where he led three times for 25 laps before the engine soured and relegated him to a 17th-place finish in the rain-shortened event. He and "Mad Max" last teamed up for the Oct. 7 UAW-GM Quality 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. There Wallace started 24th and was involved in an early-race skirmish with Ricky Rudd on pit road. The team lost a lap while attempting to
repair the damage, but later made up the lost lap. Wallace ran among the top five for most of the remainder of the race before falling back to a seventh-place finish.

"With just two races left for the year, we're focused on finishing as high in the points as we can, so we've just gotta' have us a good finish this weekend at Atlanta," Wallace concluded.

In 38 Atlanta races, Wallace has recorded two wins, eight top-five finishes, 16 top-10 finishes and three pole positions.

This weekend's schedule calls for practice on Friday from 11:20 a.m. until 1:20 p.m. A single round of qualifying at 3:05 p.m. will
determine the entire 43-car starting field. Saturday's schedule calls for practice sessions from 10:00 a.m. until 10:45 a.m. and from 11:15 a.m. until 12:00 noon. Sunday's NAPA 500 has a 12:30 p.m. EST starting time and features live coverage by NBC-TV and PRN (Radio).