Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Wallace eyes end of 0-for-19 streak in Daytona 500

Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2002 | 12:41 p.m.

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at bh@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4089.

If determination counts for anything, Rusty Wallace certainly would have to be considered the favorite to win the 44th annual Daytona 500.

A victory in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series' premier event is the one accomplishment that has eluded Wallace. But the 45-year-old driver is more confident than ever that he can snap his 19-race winless streak in the Feb. 17 Daytona 500.

"Hopefully, the 20th time will be the charm," Wallace said. "We're coming in there with a new crew chief (Bill Wilburn), some proven race cars and a ton of enthusiasm. If eagerness and a positive attitude has anything to do with it, I'd say we're better off than we've ever been."

Wallace has watched a pair of his contemporaries, Darrell Waltrip and the late Dale Earnhardt, define their careers with wins in "The Great American Race." Waltrip won his first Daytona 500 in 1989 in his 17th try and Earnhardt finally won the 500 in 1998 in his 20th attempt.

"We definitely know what great drivers like Darrell Waltrip and Dale Earnhardt went through before they won it and I'll guarantee you there will be a hell of a celebration when we pull it off," Wallace said. "The way we've been running, we've just got to eventually win it and I think we're closer than ever to a Daytona win."

Wallace is coming off a third-place finish in last year's Daytona 500 -- his career-best showing in 19 attempts -- and has posted all five of his top-five finishes at Daytona International Speedway in his past eight races at the 2.5-mile oval.

"It's frustrating to have been as close as we've been and still not have won it," Wallace said. "But if there's anything we're not lacking, it's optimism and determination and that's certainly helped us through all the years.

"I can still remember when Dale finally won the thing a few years back; he was so happy, but he was telling everybody to go ask Rusty how it would feel because he's in line to win it next. It would certainly be a great day in my career to take that checkered flag, that's for sure."

The runner-up in the race will take home at least $928,000 while the driver who finishes last in the 43-car field will earn a minimum of $114,000.

By contrast, Lee Petty collected $19,050 for winning the inaugural Daytona 500 in 1959.

Haas-Carter Motorsports co-owner Travis Carter has indicated the team might not be able to compete in the March 3 UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway -- the third race of the season -- if Kmart discontinues its sponsorship and a new sponsor cannot be found.

A Kmart official said in a prepared statement that it would continue to evaluate its NASCAR sponsorship as part of its current Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring.

Allen, who drives a Pontiac for car owner Mary Wolfe, qualified 38th in the 42-car field. He got caught up in a multi-car crash early in the race and lost nearly 40 laps in the garage area while his Wolfe Motorsports crew made repairs to the car.

NASCAR Winston Cup veteran Ken Schrader won the 100-lap race.