STATESVILLE, N.C. NASCAR veteran Mike Wallace has been selected to drive the No. 66 Motorsports Business Management NASCAR Cup Series entry in the Feb. 16 Daytona 500 at Daytona Intl Speedway.

The 65-year-old Missouri native has more than 800 starts in the top three divisions of NASCAR, including 11 starts in the Great American Race.

Wallace has earned nine NASCAR national series race wins, and he has driven to victory lane at Daytona in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series.

I am very excited to be teamed with Carl Long and the complete MBM Motorsports team, along with Doug Yates support, for a return trip to the Daytona 500 after being away for a few years, Wallace said. I just cant wait to work with Carl again in the first laps of practice at the World Center of Speed, Daytona Intl Speedway. I say it that way out of the enormous honor and respect I have for Daytona, along with all the pride and prestige it brings to myself and my team as a winner here. Fortunately, I did win the inaugural NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Daytona, so my name is etched in the history books, along with my Xfinity Series and ARCA wins at the Speedway.

2024 was a devastating year for me with the loss of Carla, my wife of 44 years, who passed away in January from a battle with cancer, Wallace added. 2025 brings fresh excitement, starting with this Daytona 500 announcement. They say you have to be in it to win it, and we are rolling into Daytona with the chance to both be a part of and then race to win the Daytona 500.

Long, who operates MBM Motorsports with co-owners Rocky and Tom Smith as well as John Jackson, shared some background on how this deal developed.

When we completed Martinsville at the end of 2024, we started the process of tearing the car down and rebuilding it back as our superspeedway car, Long explained. We made the

jump in November to sign the Yates engine contract for the (Daytona) 500 without knowing with any certainty exactly how it would all come together.

In a team Facebook post before Christmas, Long explained the status of his organization and speculated on the possible open entries for Daytona. Wallace gave the MBM team owner a call and within a few minutes, Carl knew he had the man he needed to pilot the No. 66 in Daytona.

I watched Mike have a lot of success at superspeedways, Long said. I brought him into the JGL Racing Xfinity Series team I helped to build, where we worked together as teammates. As a driver, I know Daytona requires a great amount of mental skill to succeed. Mike has always been one of the best plate racers, and the skill set he brings makes him the best choice among drivers to be able to race our way into the Daytona 500.

Long-time team partner Coble Enterprises has already signed up to support the No. 66 team in Daytona as an associate sponsor.