Rusty Wallace will be back racing after 21 years since his last full-time NASCAR season, and he recently got his hands on the Pontiac Firebird he will be driving in Washington, D.C., on August 22.

As part of IndyCar's Freedom 250 grand prix weekend, IROC (International Race of Champions) will hold an exhibition race featuring NASCAR Hall of Famers Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, Bobby Labonte, Rusty Wallace, and Bill Elliott, as well as Indy 500 winners Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, and Dario Franchitti. 

Wallace got the opportunity to drive the car, and while he initially felt he had probably lost some of his racecraft, he was badly mistaken. When in conversation with Mike Bagley on the "NASCAR Live" podcast, the 1989 Cup champion was asked how he felt getting back into the racecar.

“When the engine fired up, sitting in the garage, and with my helmet on and all the stuff… came down pit road, coming through first gear, second gear, and I’m like, wow, it’s starting to feel normal again,” Wallace said on the podcast.

The former Penske driver had expressed his skepticism in getting behind the wheel again, but revealed that speaking to the likes of Bill Elliott and being requested to make the comeback for the special race by none other than Roger Penske was what pushed him to get back in the car.

The 1989 Cup champion added, “I come down that straightaway, getting it pretty good, and the car stuck real good. Then I went down into second gear, and I said ‘Oh, yeah, I remember all this now.’ The gearbox was great. Everything shifted good and my downshifts were good.”

But before Wallace returns at the IROC race, Team Penske will run a very special livery in North Wilkesboro this weekend, a track where  Wallace enjoyed great success.

Austin Cindric to run special “Midnight” livery at North Wilkesboro

Team Penske is celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2026, and as part of that, they have a special celebration of their No. 2 car coming up at North Wilkesboro.

Rusty Wallace drove the Penske No. 2 car for 15 years from 1991 to 2005 and won 37 races for the team. 10 of those came in a historic yet heartbreaking run in 1993 when he eventually lost out on the championship to the late Dale Earnhardt. 

But during that historic run, Wallace drove an iconic black livery popularly known as ‘Midnight’ to not one but two wins at North Wilkesboro. In 1993, the track held two races.

With North Wilkesboro back on the NASCAR calendar for the first time since 1996 as a points race, Penske has put a tribute livery on Austin Cindric’s No. 2 car that resembles the Wallace midnight car, with Rusty Wallace's name on the car as well. Journalist Steven Taranto posted pictures of the car on X on Friday.

As Penske celebrates the legacy of the No. 2 car, Rusty Wallace’s legacy comes back on track, while the Hall of Famer gets ready to go racing again next month.

How do you rate the tribute livery that Penske will run? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Debrup Chaudhuri

Edited by

Yash Kotak