Player Management International Media Release
Daytona Beach, FL (July 4, 2008) – On the heels of mourning the death of Bob Germain, Sr., the Germain Racing team unloaded the #7 GEICO Camry in Daytona with hopes of reliving the excitement that occurred at the historic speedway on July 2, 2004, when Mike Wallace and the Gecko last visited Victory Lane.
On Thursday afternoon, the opening practice session was promising, as the #7 GEICO Camry sat 9th on the speed charts when it concluded. Unfortunately, due to Mother Nature dropping large amounts of rain on Daytona International Speedway, the final practice session was canceled.
Qualifying took place on Friday afternoon and Wallace would be the sixth car to take to the high-banked 2.5-mile tri-oval. The track temperature during Wallace’s trek around the race track was 148-degrees, however Wallace would show little concern as he toured the facility in 50.199 seconds, at a rate of speed of 179.286 miles per hour. The track temperature would drop significantly as qualifying wore on, however Wallace’s time would stick and he would find himself starting 15th, just ahead of Mike Bliss and Denny Hamlin.
When the green flag was displayed under perfect skies, Wallace immediately found himself running back in the 19th position on Lap 2, however he would rebound quickly and move up to the 12th spot by the time Lap 3 was in the books. Just a single lap later on Lap 4, Wallace put the GEICO Camry in the Top 10 and Lap 15 found the #7 GEICO Camry in the lead.
On the 4th of July, fireworks are abound and Daytona International Speedway was no different, especially on yet another green, white, checker finish. Most race car drivers strive to survive the entire race to get to the final lap. On the contrary, Mike Wallace has had to worry more about the final lap, as on two occasions this season Wallace and the #7 GEICO Camry have been taken out on the final lap while preparing to record a Top 10 finish. First Darlington, then Charlotte. Now Wallace can add Daytona to that list.
Coming to the checkered flag out of Turn 4, Wallace was in position to record another Top 10 finish for the GEICO Racing team when nephew Steven Wallace would intervene. The younger Wallace would move up the race track and send his uncle into a 200-mph spin across the infield grass that culminated with the #7 GEICO Camry taking a hard hit into the inside retaining wall.
As Wallace and the GEICO Camry rested just a hundred yards or so from the finish line, they sat with a destroyed race car and a 22nd place finish. Despite the misfortune on the last lap, Wallace and the Gecko still sit in the 8th position in the point standings.
“This was unfortunate plain and simple and it should have been another Top 10 for this GEICO team,” Wallace said. “The black and white car got into me and ended our evening. It was a really hard hit and now we have a destroyed race car and ended up 22nd instead of 8th or 9th.”
This week, the Germain Racing team heads to Chicago, Illinois. The Windy City has been good to Wallace in the past, as he ran strong there in 2004 and led the last eighteen laps before running out of gas on the final lap. With plenty of fuel in tow this year, Wallace and the Gecko are looking forward to getting to Victory Lane.
Mike Wallace and the #7 GEICO Camry will hit the track at Chicagoland Speedway for their opening practice session on Thursday, July 10th, at 3:30 PM (ET), with the final practice session being held at 7:00 PM (ET). Qualifying will be held on Friday afternoon at 3:35 PM (ET).
The Dollar General 300 powered by Coca-Cola is on Friday night, July 11th, and it will be televised live on ESPN beginning at 7:30 PM (ET), while the Motor Racing Network (MRN) will carry the live radio broadcast.
Visit GEICO Racing’s innovative, interactive web site at: www.geicogarage.com.
To learn more about the GEICO Racing program, please visit: www.GEICOracing7.com.
To learn more about the Sport Clips Racing program, please visit: www.SportClips.com .