Three Wallace brothers now in top rides

Jenna Fryer

Thursday, Nov. 1, 2001 | 5:32 a.m.

ROCKINGHAM, N.C. - For most of their adult lives, Mike and Kenny Wallace watched with envy as their oldest brother became a NASCAR star.

They usually shared in his joy, but never his success. While Rusty Wallace became one of the top stock car drivers, his two siblings struggled in bad rides with low-budget teams.

Not anymore. For the first time, all the Wallace brothers are driving for top Winston Cup teams with an equal shot at victory Sunday in the Pop Secret Microwave 400.

"It's pretty neat because for a long time people have been saying my brothers couldn't drive," said 45-year-old Rusty. "Well, here they are in strong rides and they're proving they can drive the heck out of a car. It makes Sunday a little bit more special for us."

It wasn't how anyone planned it, but unusual circumstance have turned what started as miserable years for two of the Wallace brothers into the biggest chances of their careers.

Mike, 42, started the season driving for a low-level team that struggled to make races. When the results weren't there early, he was temporarily replaced in the car.

Kenny, meanwhile, went to the season-opening Daytona 500 in February without a sponsor, driving for a first-year team operating on a race-to-race basis. The sponsor finally came but the dollars only temporarily kept the shop doors open. It wasn't long before the team folded and 38-year-old Kenny was out of a job.

Just when things looked the worst, they got better.

Steve Park was injured in September in a crash during a Busch series race and Dale Earnhardt Inc. needed a fill-in driver while Park healed from his injuries. Kenny got the call and the chance to drive the No. 1 Chevrolet for the rest of the season.

Jeremy Mayfield was fired by Penske Racing at the beginning of October, and Mike didn't hesitate to leave his struggling team to take over Roger Penske's No. 12 Ford as a teammate to Rusty.

The fill-in jobs put Rusty's brothers in top-notch equipment and gave them the chance to run up front with him.

"It's unbelievable what a difference a strong team is," Mike said. "For the first time in a long time, when I give the car some gas, it moves. When I turn the steering wheel, it goes in the right direction. All of a sudden, I can prove I can drive a race car."

Mike did that last week, finishing a career-best second.

Kenny, meanwhile, has run well for DEI - all three of his top-10 finishes this season have come while he's been in Park's car.

After years of being considered the two Wallace brothers who couldn't drive, Kenny and Mike are suddenly proving their critics wrong.

"I think we've upset the apple cart," Kenny said. "People always want to say it's the driver, but the fact of the matter is that Jeremy Mayfield got out of that car and my brother is doing five times as good as Jeremy.

"It's really neat for drivers like Mike and myself who have never gotten in good race cars. When you get in a bad race car, people question your ability."

For years people were questioning the ability of the younger two brothers as Rusty won a Winston Cup championship and 54 races.

But they never got the chance Rusty was given. As the eldest son, most of the family resources went into his career as he started out on Midwest tracks. There was little money left over for Mike and none at all for Kenny, the youngest.

So Mike was on his own trying to make it and Kenny was forced to work on Rusty's cars, never even getting a chance to drive.

"We weren't wealthy, so I was encouraged to help Rusty with his career," Kenny said. "That was great and that was fine with me. I got to hang around Rusty and share in his success.

"But that wasn't good enough for Mike. He and Rusty were never that close, so Mike sort of went his separate way as he tried to find his ground."

Mike has finally found it, and as luck would have it, he's found it alongside Rusty. The relationship between Mike and Rusty is closer than it has ever been, enabling Rusty to finally find the teammate he never had in Mayfield.

"I really enjoy working with Mike and alongside him," Rusty said. "But it means more to me to just see him in a position to prove he has the talent I always knew he did."

Even though things couldn't be better right now for the three brothers, they are sure to be short-lived.

Kenny will be out of the DEI car when Park comes back and there's no guarantee Penske will continue to field the No. 12 next season. But if he does, Mike has as good a shot as anyone to land the full-time ride.

So there is little time for the Wallaces to enjoy the heady times right now. Mike and Kenny are instead keeping their foot on the gas and hoping for the best.

"Gosh, I'd like for things to work out for them," Rusty said. "Both their deals are temporary right now, but they've been driving the wheels off the last few weeks and that should open a bunch of doors for them."