Rusty Wallace -- he's the one on the left in that picture there -- has spent five years as a team owner in the Nationwide Series, and while he hasn't floundered, he's found it quite the challenge.
Wallace reminisced earlier this week about how tough it's been running in the Nationwide Series. Back in 2004, he, Jamie McMurray and Billy Packer ran in the serries, and McMurray got the team its lone win in Darlington. Once Wallace's son Steve turned 18, Rusty Wallace Racing became, as he said this week, "a development team for my own family."
From there, pretty much every Wallace this side of William Wallace (freedom!) has run for Rusty Wallace Racing, along with McMurray, David Stremme, Max Papis and Brendan Gaughan. The latter three drivers, along with Steve Wallace, have had ever-increasing levels of success, including multiple top-10s. Even so, Wallace isn't satisfied:
"[T]he Nationwide Series is a tough, tough series, and it's very, very competitive. It costs a lot of money, and unfortunately it's very hard to get the sponsors because most of the sponsors want to go Cup racing."
Wallace has also entered a technical partnership with Kevin Harvick Inc., and Harvick is helping RWR figure its way through the thicket of setups and technology. It's a prelude to Sprint Cup ownership for Wallace, though he's had to put off a planned 2010 launch because of sponsor issues.
The lessons here are obvious: Tony Stewart aside, making a go of it as a driver/owner and later "just" an owner is a dicey business even in the best of times. And when the economy goes south, the troubles can come in battalions. Still, with the experience he's gaining here, Wallace could be the latest NASCAR family dynasty ... even if it'll take a little longer than expected.
Rusty Wallace discovers how tough NASCAR Nationwide Series can be [Scene Daily]
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