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Memphis: Rusty Wallace Racing Friday report

STEVE WALLACE, STREMME TOP SPEED CHARTS IN FINAL PRACTICE AT MEMPHIS MEMPHIS, TN (October 24, 2008)--Much has been made of the Nationwide Series's stand-alone races being opportunities for young drivers to make their marks. On Friday afternoon ...

Published: Oct 25, 2008, 10:39 PM

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STEVE WALLACE, STREMME TOP SPEED CHARTS IN FINAL PRACTICE AT MEMPHIS

MEMPHIS, TN (October 24, 2008)--Much has been made of the Nationwide Series's stand-alone races being opportunities for young drivers to make their marks. On Friday afternoon in Memphis, Rusty Wallace Racing teammates Steve Wallace (No. 66 5-Hour Energy Chevrolet) and David Stremme (No. 64 Penske Truck Rental Chevrolet) positioned themselves to do just that.

In this today's final practice session for tomorrow afternoon's Kroger "On Track for the Cure" 250, Wallace scorched the ¾-mile oval at Memphis Motorsports Park with a lap of 23.066 seconds (117.055 MPH) to post the day's fastest lap of the 50 teams entered. Wallace's best lap was 0.157 seconds faster than second-place. By comparison, nearly the same differential marked the difference between second-place and 11th-place.

Said Wallace, "We have a really good 5-Hour Energy Chevrolet here this weekend. It's not only fast, but I was also really happy with the way it drove on old tires and in traffic. All of the Nationwide Series drivers circle this race as a chance to win and I think that we've got as good of a shot as anyone to do just that. Tomorrow, it's going to come down to keeping good track position and staying out of trouble. We know that there's going to be a ton of cautions, so if we can just stay out of them, I think we'll have a shot at going to victory lane."

Wallace's teammate, David Stremme, has been one of the most consistent competitors in the Nationwide Series this season and the Indiana native continued that consistency in this afternoon's practice sessions. Stremme rounded out the Rusty Wallace Racing effort with a second-place ranking in the day's final practice session, posting a lap of 23.223 seconds (116.264 MPH) on his 57th--and final--lap of the day.

Stated Stremme, "I think we have a Penske Truck Rental Chevrolet here that is capable of winning the race. It drives really well on old tires and I feel like I can maneuver through traffic really well. Just like last year's race though, tomorrow afternoon's race is going to be a "slug-fest." We could barely even make it through practice today with all of the cautions. With that said, having good pit stops, maintaining track position and staying out of trouble are going to be the keys to winning tomorrow. If we can manage to do that and position ourselves to be there at the end, I think my teammate and I have good shots at being up front when it counts."

-credit: rwr

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