Newman reminds Wallace of Miller times

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Rusty Wallace isn't surprised that a very familiar face haunts teammate Ryan Newman's hauler.

"I've given up on trying to save Don Miller's life," Wallace said with a grin.

	Rusty Wallace and Ryan Newman have had similar mentors. Credit: Autostock

The sight of Miller and Newman together is déjà vu to the former Winston Cup champion, who once enjoyed a similar driver-mentor relationship. Time and divergent roles have separated the then general manager Miller and driver Wallace, but the latter can appreciate the role Miller plays for Newman.

A Penske friend and associate since the early 1970s, the 63-year-old Miller knows orchestration. He's played a major part in the construction of Newman's team, and according to Wallace, that's nothing new.

Miller has been a central component in Roger Penske's NASCAR operation for more than two decades, whether it's research, engineering, personnel or management -- all the necessities of team building.

"So he did a lot of stuff behind the scenes that really nobody knew he was doing that was real instrumental in the way everything's turning out today," Wallace said of Newman's team.

Wallace cites the current example of Miller organizing show cars for a soon-to-open Penske racing museum in Arizona. According to Wallace, Miller also set up Newman's souvenir program, yet still finds time to guide the No. 12 team on a near-daily basis.

Sometimes those responsibilities are taxing. Health problems forced Miller to throttle back a bit in recent years, before Penske entrusted him with Newman's career.

"If there's bushes that need to be planted in the back yard, he'll organize getting involved in that," Wallace said. "We tried to get him to retire so he can take care of his health, but he won't do it. He just keeps getting involved in every damn thing, which is good. If that's what he wants to do, I'm all for it because he's done so much for me it's unreal."

"You need that trust in someone," Penske said. "This business is a big business, there's a lot of things going on, and I think Don has that credibility with both drivers."

Miller, who gives Wallace high marks for his acceptance and own brand of mentoring for Newman, is especially grateful for the career experiences with Wallace. The two were associated in the mid-to-late 1980s when Wallace drove for owner Raymond Beadle. The duo spent much of the 1990s together after Wallace moved to Penske Racing South.

"It's as much his team as my team," said Miller, who owns 25 percent of Newman's team (Wallace owns 25 percent, Penske owns 50 percent). "We're equal partners in the thing. So he knows someday when he stops doing it all this will be his, because I'm not going to be around. All you have to do is look in the mirror to find out how old you are."