Kaulig Racing’s Free Agent Truck programme has pulled in some big names lately, but Rusty Wallace isn’t going to be one of them, at least in the short-term future. 

Speaking at the pre-race press conference before the Window World 450 at North Wilkesboro, Wallace revealed that he turned down an offer to drive for Kaulig after being approached by the team representatives, and instead took up an opportunity to feature in the IROC series. 

“The Kaulig guys got a hold of me at the Betty Jane France poker tournament this year and asked me to do that, and I said no. And then I got a phone call two weeks ago from Ray Evernham wanting me to run at the White House in an IROC car, and I said yes.”

Continuing in the presser shared by Cup Scene on YouTube, Wallace revealed that he and Bill Elliott spent a full day practicing at Carolina Motorsports Park in Kershaw, South Carolina. He expressed surprise at how quickly habits such as aggressive downshifting and braking came back to him after his last competitive stint in NASCAR in 2005. 

The IROC special exhibition race will join the hugely anticipated Freedom 250 GP, set to take place on August 22, 2026, at the White House. 

Wallace revealed he will be part of a star-studded driver lineup that includes the likes of Jeff Gordon, Bill Elliott, Kurt Busch, Bobby Labonte, Dario Franchitti, Hélio Castroneves, and Tony Kanaan. 

While Rusty Wallace is clear on not joining Kaulig’s Free Agent programme, another driver is coming out of retirement for the same. 

Elliott Sadler joins Kaulig Racing’s Free Agent Truck programme

Elliott Sadler is set to return to competitive racing, eight years after he retired from the sport. Kaulig Racing announced that the 51-year-old will drive the No. 25 RAM 1500 at Richmond Raceway. 

The team confirmed the news a couple of days back through a post on X that read, ‘Retirement is on hold!’ while announcing that the 51-year-old will get behind the wheel at Richmond.

Sadler retired from full-time NASCAR competition following the 2018 season. Over the course of his career, he made more than 400 starts in the Cup Series and collected three race wins.

He also became one of the most experienced drivers in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, where he recorded 13 victories and came close to winning the championship on multiple occasions. He finished runner-up in 2011, 2012, 2016 and 2017.

One of the most talked-about incidents from Sadler's career came during the 2010 Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway. While battling on the track, Sadler suffered a massive crash after making contact with AJ Allmendinger. His car slammed hard into the inside wall, with the impact destroying the front end of the vehicle.

The crash became a talking point because of the force of the impact, and also because there is very little broadcast footage showing the incident, since the cameras cut at the very last second. 

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Written by

Aaradhya Singh

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason