As a NASCAR driver, there are countless moments in one’s career that leave a spot in their mind. Some of them are so special that they stay with you for decades. One such moment came back to veteran NASCAR racer Kenny Wallace, who finished second in Friday night’s All-Star dirt car race at Brownstown, Illinois.

While sipping on a cup of coffee, Wallace spoke to his fans about that one thing about coming second and how Dale Earnhardt‘s advice changed his way of looking at second-place finishes.

Kenny Wallace reveals the advice he received from Dale Earnhardt

Kenny Wallace and Dale Earnhardt shared a very special relationship. The Intimidator once invited Wallace to his famous Deer Head shop at Mooresville for dinner. Kenny Wallace had just finished second in a race and was whining about how frustrating it was for him. Wallace said, “Second sucks, I hate second, oh my life is over, I keep finishing second…”

However, Dale Earnhardt saw this differently. He looked Wallace straight in the face and said, “Boy, you keep taking those second-place finishes”. When a seven-time NASCAR champion and that too the Intimidator himself stares at you and says something so assertive, it is only normal that you would listen without making another noise. After all, that attitude is what helped Dale Earnhardt win 7 championships.

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Wallace felt like that advice had made him grow, running over 900 races as a full-time NASCAR driver. Earlier in a video, he spoke to Michael Waltrip about himself pushing Dale Earnhardt to win his last victory at Talladega and finishing second himself.

“I know how it feels to have your best memory be a second-place finish,” said Michael Waltrip

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In an episode of Waltrip Unfiltered, Wallace spoke to the host about his second-place finish at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2000, where he finished second after Dale Earnhardt. He told Michael Waltrip that during the last laps, the crowd of 250000 people was cheering so loudly that he could hear them from inside his car.

Wallace exclaimed, “I could hear the roar of the crowd of the last lap, through my motor noise. The noise was so loud, it was defeating, I’ve got goosebumps right now…”

Michael Waltrip also agreed with Wallace as he reminisced about his second-place finish to Dale Earnhardt Junior in the 2001 Daytona 500. He admitted, “People ask me what my favorite moment was in NASCAR. It’s when I finished second to Dale Junior at Daytona. That moment was something I’ll never forget. It was the best moment of my career and I didn’t even win.”

It is great when you are the winner, but probably being second has its own benefits. Seeing oneself be so close to the title and still losing it only reignites the fire within to come back stronger next time. It also provides valuable insights into the mistakes that you made.

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Kenny’s parting advice to the young racers in NASCAR? The 59-year-old reporter for FOX said, “You won second. The guy in third, he really wanted to finish second. When you run second have a beer afterwards.”