Steve Wallace heads to Texas II

Steve Wallace

Photo by: Ashley Dickerson, ASP Inc.

This Week's 5 Hour Energy Toyota ... Steve Wallace will pilot Rusty Wallace Racing chassis RWR-070 in Saturday afternoon's O'Reilly Auto Parts Challenge. This is a brand new 5-Hour Energy Toyota Camry that will be put through its first paces this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.

With Heavy Hearts, We Race ... The Wallace family lost their patriarch on Sunday, October 30. Russ Wallace passed away at the age of 77 from complications of a stroke. In memory of Wallace, both Rusty Wallace Racing entries will feature "in memory of Russ Wallace" in place of the driver's names.

Get to the Points ... Wallace's 13th-place finish at Charlotte dropped him one position, to ninth, in the NASCAR Nationwide Series point standings. Wallace trails eighth-place driver Brian Scott by seven markers, and holds an 11-point advantage over his Rusty Wallace Racing teammate, Michael Annett, for the 10th position.

Wallace at Texas ... In 10 NASCAR Nationwide Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway, Wallace has recorded two top-10 finishes. His best result at the 1.5-mile oval is ninth, which he posted in April 2010.

Cast Your Vote ... Voting has begun for the Most Popular Driver of the Year award in the Nationwide Series. Fans are encouraged to log onto NASCAR.com to vote for their favorite driver from the series once per day until voting ends on Thursday, November 17.

Fall Break ... Wallace and the No. 66 team took advantage of the final off-weeks in the 2011 schedule by heading to Rockingham Speedway for a test session on Monday, October 24. The following day, the Doug Randolph-led team spent the day at the wind tunnel in Mooresville, N.C. Additionally, Wallace entered a couple of UARA Late Model races, including last weekend's event at Concord Motorsports Park, where he picked up his fourth series win in dominating fashion - winning the pole and leading every lap along the way.

"Texas Motor Speedway is super-fast. The surface there has really aged and it's very abrasive. You'll see guys wide open all the way around the track in qualifying trim, but once the tires wear a bit in the race, you're definitely lifting and even having to use some brake if your car's not handing very well. As the track has aged, it has also gotten really bumpy, especially in Turns 1 and 2. You're going so fast here that you have to be really careful not to let those bumps upset your car." - Steve Wallace on racing at Texas Motor Speedway