"Out of control but in control" - $9M-worth Kenny Wallace reflects on Jeff Gordon's breakthrough, discusses Corey Day’s NASCAR future

Former NASCAR driver Kenny Wallace drew comparisons between young phenom Corey Day and four-time Cup champion Jeff Gordon. Wallace reminisced about Gordon's debut in NASCAR as he looked forward to Day's Truck Series debut at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Wallace noted that Gordon's talent was first recognized through his appearances on ESPN's Thursday Night Thunder, where he raced USAC midgets. Gordon emerged as the breakout star from the show, leading to his Busch Series (now Xfinity) debut with Hugh Connerty Racing in the #67 Pontiac at Rockingham.

Kenny Wallace, worth $9 million (as per Celebrity Net Worth), believes that dirt racing sensation Corey Day's NASCAR trajectory could follow a path similar to Jeff Gordon's. Reflecting on Gordon's early career, Wallace recalled that the Hendrick Motorsports legend lined up on the front row in his debut appearance but wrecked out of the race.

"Corey Day is making his NASCAR Truck Series debut at Bristol, I'm excited to see this. I don't expect him to do good right away, because there's got to be start right? If you go way back, we watched Jeff Gordon get his start, I was there from Day 1, when Gordon drove that Pontiac Outback Steakhouse at Rockingham, sat on the pole...and did some wrecking," he said on his Coffee With Kenny show. [from 1:40]

"We knew Jeff was always good from Day 1, because we watched him on Thursday Night Thunder, when he would show up on ESPN. That is how Jeff Gordon got his break. You turn on ESPN on Thursday night and this guy was out of control but in control. Jeff Gordon, we found him, they found on Thursday Night Thunder."

Day has similarly made a splash with his performances in Kyle Larson's High Limit Series. He is slated to drive the #81 Chevy for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing at Bristol in the Truck Series on Thursday, September 19. Additionally, Day is set to make three more starts at Martinsville Speedway, Kansas Speedway, and Homestead-Miami Speedway.

---

Kenny Wallace on how Kyle Larson fast-tracked Corey Day's NASCAR debut

Kenny Wallace said that Corey Day is a Hendrick Motorsports driver and will rise through the ranks of NASCAR with the support of Rick Hendrick and Jeff Gordon. Wallace emphasized that Kyle Larson's endorsement has fast-tracked the 18-year-old's rise to NASCAR.

"Corey Day is definitely a Hendrick Motorsports driver. You can thank Kyle Larson, Larson tells Rick Hendrick and Jeff Gordon, 'You better get Day before somebody else gets him'. So he's here, he's arrived way quicker than I thought. He's going to make it," he said [from 3:08].

"Hendrick Motorsports is going to make Day a great NASCAR racer. They're going to hurry up his process. They're going to take him all the way through. Don't be surprised if you see him in some of Dale Jr's late model stocks."

The 18-year-old dirt racing phenom from Clovis, California, has already made his ARCA debut with sponsorship from HendrickCars.com. He is set to make his second ARCA start at Bristol this weekend.