Wallace likely to drive Park's car on Sunday

By Dave Rodman, Turner Sports Interactive
September 1, 2001
6:15 PM EDT (2215 GMT)

DARLINGTON, S.C. -- Kenny Wallace “most likely” will drive the No. 1 Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet in Sunday’s Southern 500, according to crew chief Paul Andrews.

Kenny Wallace

At the very least, Andrews said, Wallace will stand by to relieve Steve Park, who will at least spend Saturday night in Carolina’s Hospital System in Florence, S.C.

“I don’t know what’s going on at the hospital, save for a few phone calls I’ve made,” Andrews said. “The doctors have got to release him and you’ve got to have Steve not so sore he can’t hardly move to drive. If the doctors don’t release him, Kenny’s gonna drive, no matter what.

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“We just got to see what’s going on over there. I haven’t personally talked to Steve and it doesn’t sound to me like he’s going to be able to drive tomorrow, even if the doctors do release him -- which I don’t think they’re going to do. The way it looks to me, Kenny’s gonna drive.”

Park suffered a moderate concussion and a possible fracture or dislocation of the left sterno-clavicular joint when his No. 31Chevrolet was T-boned behind the driver’s door by Larry Foyt’s car in Saturday's South Carolina 200.

Foyt said he was traveling more than 100 mph in third gear when he struck Park’s car.

Wallace drove the car in the final 45-minute Happy Hour practice and posted the 27th best lap behind fast driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Earnhardt Jr.’s fast lap was in 30.134 seconds, 163.191 mph, while Wallace was 27th fastest at 159.611 mph after running 21 laps.

Wallace has been without a Winston Cup ride since splitting with Eel River Racing at midseason. Since then, Wallace has concentrated on running the full Busch Series schedule. He finished 18th in Saturday’s race.

Park has driven for DEI in the Winston Cup Series since his rookie season of 1998. That year, he was injured in a crash at Atlanta and missed half the season. He won the 1997 Busch Series Rookie of the Year Award while driving for DEI. Park broke through with his first win in 2000 and followed that up with a win at Rockingham earlier this year.