Mike Wallace’s Daytona 500 replacement fires a bold warning after “frustrating” setback: “We have a solid chance”

Former NASCAR driver Mike Wallace attempted to compete in the prestigious Daytona 500 in the upcoming season. However, to his misfortune, NASCAR did not allow him to run in the crown jewel event. Following this, former JGR driver Chandler Smith is now all set to run his second Daytona 500, and he feels much more confident this time around.

Nine-time NASCAR race winner Mike Wallace debuted in the 1990 Xfinity Series Winston Classic at Martinsville Speedway. He earned five of his victories in the Truck Series, including the 2000 Daytona 250 with Ultra Motorsports. However, due to NASCAR's new OEP rule requiring a 90-day advance notice, he was unable to compete in this year's 500-mile event.

Meanwhile, Chandler Smith, who moved from JGR's Xfinity program to Front Row Motorsports in the Truck Series recently revealed his thoughts on running the Daytona 500, while recalling a frustrating incident from his previous attempt.

"I really think we have a solid chance of making it on speed. So I'm eager to see how the first practice goes. I made a 500 attempt a few years ago, but we didn't have any practice before qualifying. I was literally the first car on the track and we had a mechanical issue. So that was definitely very frustrating and questioned why we didn't have practice before the biggest qualifying session of motorsports. And I'm really happy to see my second attempt. There's going to be practice before we hit the track for qualifying." Smith told Bob Pockrass

Chandler Smith's campaign in the Xfinity Series last season ended in P5. Despite a successfull year with 2 trips to victory lane and 15 top-five finishes, Smith moved to the Truck Series and will pilot the #38 Ford for FRM.

Meanwhile, unlike his elder brother and former Cup Series champion Rusty Wallace, who won 55 races, Mike Wallace never claimed a Cup Series victory.

"Utterly shocked": Mike Wallace on Elton Sawyer’s 'devastating' Daytona decision

Mike Wallace expressed his emotions on being rejected to run the Daytona 500 this season. Wallace expressed that while his initial interaction with NASCAR's Competition director Elton Sawyer confirmed his presence at Daytona International Speedway, however, things eventually took a turn for worse.

Expressing his shock and frustration, Wallace shared a post on Facebook which was later shared on X by Bob Pockrass.

"To my utter shock and devastation at 4:00 today, NASCAR competition director Elton Sawyer called me to inform me that NASCAR has decided not only to not approve me for Daytona 500 but at this time not approved to race in the Cup, Xfinity and Truck series in 2025 but could go through their process to possibly get approved for 2026. This comes as a total shock as the President of NASCAR last week in a real phone call told me all was good and he will see me in Daytona." the post read

Although Mike Wallace will not compete in this year's Great American race, can he pave his way to the Daytona 500 next season? Let us know in the comments.