Rusty Wallace has finished first or second in 16 percent of his 676 starts. Credit: Autostock

Wallace's success also has its disappointments

Competitive fire still burns within: 'Second sucks, it really does'

por·tend (pôr-tend) -- To serve as an omen or a warning of.

Russell William Wallace Jr.'s NASCAR debut was just that -- a warning that the redhead from Arnold, Mo., was on the horizon, a gathering storm that took three years to pass before everyone realized he was the real deal.

Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images

Inside the Numbers Most second-place finishes Rank Driver No. 1. R. Petty 157 2. D. Pearson 89 3. B. Allison 87 4. D. Earnhardt 70 5. C. Yarborough 59 6. D. Waltrip 58 7. B. Baker 56 8. M. Martin 51 9. L. Petty 48 10. B. Baker 42   T. Labonte 42 12. R. Wallace 41 13. J. Gordon 37   B. Isaac 37   N. Jarrett 37 Last CallWallace announces plans for retirement after '05 Sign up for TrackPass now BUY YOUR NEXTEL DRIVER PHONE

Wallace qualified seventh for the Atlanta 500 on March 16, 1980. By the end of the day, future rival Dale Earnhardt was the only thing between Wallace and victory in his first Cup race. Driving for Roger Penske, Wallace finished second that day, sandwiched between Earnhardt and Wallace's hero, Bobby Allison, the only three cars on the lead lap.

Wallace ran in nine Cup series races from 1980-83, spending most of his time at the ASA and USAC levels. He won the ASA championship in '83, then landed a full-time NASCAR ride in '84 and was named rookie of the year.

Fifty-five victories later, Wallace's "Last Call" tour is under way. While he ranks eighth on the all-time wins list, Wallace also has endured his share of on-track disappointments -- ones that got away, if you will.

This Week: Near-misses

• 1994 Coca-Cola 600
... led race-high 187 laps (47 percent), finished second to Jeff Gordon

Judging from the initial reaction, the move Gordon and his crew pulled wouldn't soon be forgotten. Gordon posted his first Cup victory after crew chief Ray Evernham one-upped the competition during a round of late pit stops at Charlotte.

Wallace, the leader, and contenders Geoff Bodine, Dale Jarrett and Ernie Irvan all pitted for fuel and four tires with about 20 laps left. Evernham countered with fuel and right-side tires only for Gordon, who was third at the time.

While the rest of the leaders had pit stops of between 17.8 and 19.6 seconds, Gordon was in and out in just 8.6 seconds -- and beat Wallace to the checkered flag by 3.9 seconds.

Wallace, whose crew is widely recognized as the best in the business, was crestfallen, especially in light of his domination of the race. "In hindsight, we should have changed two and we would have won by a ton. But it was a pretty savvy move on their part. They did a good job."

• 1997 Food City 500
... led race-high 240 laps (48 percent), finished second to Gordon

Wallace, the pole-sitter, took the lead for the last time on Lap 415 at Bristol and built a comfortable edge before Gordon -- with Hendrick teammate Terry Labonte on his rear bumper -- closed to within inches of Wallace with 20 laps remaining.

Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images

RUSTY WALLACE •   Driver Page •   2005 Statistics •   Rusty's video highlights •   Superstore: Wallace gear •   Join Rusty's fan club! Inside the Numbers Number of times and drivers to whom Rusty Wallace has finished second Rank Driver No. 1. J. Gordon 8 2. D. Earnhardt 7 3. B. Elliott 4 4. D. Allison 3   E. Irvan 3   M. Martin 3 7. G. Bodine 2   R. Rudd 2 9. Ku. Busch 1   W. Burton 1   H. Gant 1   D. Jarrett 1   M. Kenseth 1   B. Labonte 1   T. Labonte 1   D. Waltrip 1   M. Waltrip 1 Note: Wallace's first five runner-up finishes were to Earnhardt.

Gordon was unable to get a good run at the leader until ducking down low as they went down the backstretch on the final lap. Wallace surged ahead as they went into the third turn, but as they entered the fourth, Gordon drove his Chevrolet into Wallace's rear bumper.

Wallace bobbled up high as he fought to control his car, and Gordon slipped past. While Gordon went on to a two car-length victory, Wallace held off Labonte for second place by about five feet.

"Just normal racing stuff," Wallace said. "I wasn't surprised he touched me because I would have probably done the same thing if I got that close. Here at Bristol, you can touch a little bit and that will do it."

• 1989 Miller High Life 400
... led race-high 131 laps (66 percent), finished second to Bill Elliott

The race came down to an 11-lap sprint between Elliott, Wallace and Darrell Waltrip at Michigan.

During the fifth and final caution period, caused when Jimmy Means spun out in Turn 2, most of the cars made a final pit stop. However, Waltrip stayed on the track.

After the restart, Waltrip jumped out to a big lead but Elliott began moving up fast. He was in second with nine laps remaining and passed Waltrip coming out of the fourth turn to lead with seven laps to go.

From then on, it was all Elliott as he pulled steadily away from the pack. Wallace, who was eighth when the green flag came out for the final time, moved around Waltrip in Turn 3 with two laps left to finish second.

Wallace might have won except for two poor pit stops late in the race. He got a set of bad tires on one and the jack broke on his final stop.

• 2000 Brickyard 400
... led race-high 110 laps (69 percent), finished second to Bobby Labonte

Labonte played the hunter to perfection, chasing Wallace until it was time to win. Labonte finally made his move 15 laps from the end, pulling alongside Wallace and bumping past to take the lead for good.

Wallace made his final pit stop on Lap 121, two laps after Labonte had passed to take the lead. Labonte made his final stop the next time around and came back onto the track about two car-lengths ahead of Wallace.

ALSO MOORESVILLE, N.C. -- Rusty Wallace's No. 2 Dodge will feature Kodak as its primary sponsor in Sunday's Nextel Cup Series race at Texas.  This is the second time the marketing arrangement has existed between Kodak and Miller Brewing Company. Wallace's initial appearance in the Kodak colors came at Watkins Glen last August, marking the first time in almost 15 years that Wallace had not carried a Miller brand on his car as his primary sponsor.  Kodak is in its second season with Penske Racing South as the sponsor of the No. 77 Dodge driven this year by rookie Travis Kvapil, who will carry Jasper Engines and Transmissions as that team's primary sponsor at Texas.

But the No. 2 Ford got right by again and stayed out front until Labonte made his move in the third turn on Lap 146. The two were side-by-side coming off Turn Four and Labonte's right front banged into Wallace's left rear panel as they sped toward the finish line.

Labonte's car was 0.004-seconds ahead at the line and gradually took control. With Wallace ahead, the two had been running almost nose-to-tail after the pit stops. But Labonte pulled away after the pass, beating Wallace to the finish by 4.229-seconds -- about 20 car-lengths.

"Second sucks, it really does,'' Wallace said. "But I drove my brains out. I mean, I had the race of my life with Bobby Labonte for 75 laps with him 4 inches off my bumper.

"I kept him behind me for 60 laps and I was thinking, 'I can do this another 20 laps.' But he was just too strong.''

• 1993 Bud 500
... led race-high 409 laps (82 percent), finished second to Mark Martin

Wallace dominated under the lights at Bristol -- and then found himself trying to explain why he lost. "It's not a big moral victory leading the most laps," Wallace said of being overtaken with 12 laps remaining by Martin.

Not even a loose wheel could prevent the year's third consecutive victory by Martin, who charged from two laps down and passed Wallace for the victory.

Wallace used outstanding pit stops and even better restarts to overwhelm the field for most of the race on the .533-mile, high-banked oval. He spent much of the night freely running away from the field between restarts. But after Martin moved into the lead on Lap 488, Wallace was unable to pull even again.

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