"Second places will win you a championship": Kenny Wallace recalls Dale Earnhardt Sr.'s lesson on handling disappointment

NASCAR legends Kenny Wallace and Dale Earnhardt Sr. were close friends and shared a mentor-student dynamic. Recently, Wallace took to social media to share one of Earnhardt's invaluable lessons on handling disappointment.

Wallace began his NASCAR career in 1988, driving for Earnhardt Sr.'s Xfinity Series team. This was the start of the bond between the two drivers. He later moved to the Cup Series, driving for his brother Rusty Wallace's team. Hailing from Missouri, the driver amassed an impressive career spanning NASCAR's Cup, Xfinity, and Truck Series, with 904 races under his belt. His record includes nine victories, 74 top-five finishes, and 204 top-ten placements.

Reflecting on his time in the Busch National Series, Wallace spoke about being frustrated with his second place finishes. He mentioned that he kept complaining about the same to Earnhardt. Sensing the need to educate the young driver, Earnhardt Sr. called Wallace to his office for a conversation about the importance of the bigger picture.

Wallace spoke about the conversation on the latest episode of his Coffee with Kenny podcast.

"No, you're thinking wrong. So Earnhardt Sr. said this to me. He said, boy, you take those second places, that'll win you a championship," Wallace said during the podcast (5:53 onwards).

Here's a look at the the entire podcast, posted by Kenny Wallace on his X page:

“Coffee with Kenny” The crowds around my racing trailer are getting bigger because of my YouTube shows and “Coffee with Kenny”

"That's what Earnhardt taught me. That was a different deal, but still in reality. When I made that video about running second, that lit some people up," he further added, highlighting Earnhardt Sr.'s lesson (6:14 onwards).

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“Missed opportunity by NASCAR," - Kenny Wallace criticizes NASCAR for slow action against Austin Dillon for Richmond Raceway's last-lap fiasco

The last-lap chaos at Richmond Raceway, which involved Austin Dillon, Joey Logano, and Denny Hamlin, has dominated fan discussions this past week. While some praised NASCAR for their unbiased judgement (both Dillion and Logano were penalized for unsportsmanlike behavior), retired Cup Series racer Kenny Wallace criticized the sanctioning body for its slow response.

"If they really wanted to do something, they'd have done it right then. You can't let him go to victory lane and then take the win away. So the win's going to stand. You cannot take the win away because you already let him go to victory lane in his car past tech inspection. He's already got the trophy. He's going to keep the trophy," Wallace said, explaining the situation. (0:21 onwards).

"I want to be clear when I say this, ccapital M-I-S-S-E-D, missed, missed opportunity by NASCAR," he added (1:06 onwards).

Here's a look at the post on X, captioned:

While we all wait on NASCAR's penalties...@Kenny_Wallace gave his opinion last night.

For reference, NASCAR has removed Austin Dillon from the 2024 Playoffs field as a penalty for his actions during the final lap of the Cook Out 400 race.