Following Kenny Wallace’s 10th place finish ESPN proclaimed “Kenny Wallace your back!”
Back he is but Wallace the race car driver was never really gone and with solid equipment we are seeing exactly what he can do.
Wallace’s resurgence this season has gone mainly under the radar. Near the end of last season Wallace said that if he couldn’t be competitive he didn’t want to run the series.
In the offseason he signed to run with RAB Racing. After his fourth consecutive top 10 finish Wallace is ready to take it one step farther and get back into victory lane.
Wallace this season has nine top 10 finishes already this season. The last time he had that many top 10 finishes was in 2005 when he finished the season with 11.
After his 10th place finish at Nashville Speedway last weekend Wallace who is seventh in the standings narrowed the gap on sixth place to just three points and just 20 points to fifth in the driver standings.
His last win came in 2001 and has had some solid seasons but the struggles of 2009 and 2010 that saw him earn just two top 10 finishes during that two year span.
If Wallace can maintain and continue to improve this season he is having his best season since 2005.
For RAB Racing and Wallace they are quietly getting the job done this season. Their best finish has been sixth and it was most recently at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
The team needs to be more consistent if they want to run down series leaders Elliott Sadler and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.
Still for Wallace running with the leaders and being competitive on a week to week basis has got to be rewarding.
One thing that Wallace points to as why he has improved is his overall health. These races are endurance races.
They are long and in the heat of the summer you need to be able to feel as fresh late in the race as you are early in the race.
For Wallace his weight loss coupled with solid equipment has Wallace the race car driver back in the title talk and contending for race wins.
Make no mistake off season changes are proving in 2011 that Wallace the race car driver never left.
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