DAYTONA BEACH -- There was a little brotherly love at Daytona International Speedway on Thursday, just in time for Valentine's Day.More to the point, it arrived just in time for Gatorade Duel at Daytona. 
Guided by brother Mike Wallace, Kenny Wallace finished 8th in the first of the 2 150-mile qualifying races at the track, races won by Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Denny Hamlin, respectively. Wallace's finish placed him first among the 8 drivers who had to race their way onto Sunday's Daytona 500 starting grid, earning him his first appearance in the 500 since 2005.
"My story, the way I feel, just incredible," said Kenny Walllace, who was pulled out of the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet last year in the middle of the season. "The story goes like this: I got fired by Furniture Row, and (they) said, 'Hey, look, we realize that we shouldn't have fired you. We want to give you an opportunity.
"We want to give you an opportunity on your own terms."
So this year they put Wallace in the No. 87 as a teammate to Joe Nemecheck, who succeeded him in the No. 78s. And this time around, they put Hendrick Motorsports power plants in the cars. Nemecheck didn't qualify for the 500 through the Duels, but he did make it based on his qualifying speed from last Sunday, the 3rd fastest lap of time trials.
Mike Wallace finished 4th in last year's 500 but doesn't have a ride this time around. He approached Kenny about helping in his pursuit.
"Because this is the 50th Daytona 500," Mike Wallace said. "You see, a few years ago, Kenny and I sat in his motorhome here and we both didn't have a ride for the 500 and we looked at each other and said never again are we not going to have something to drive down here.
"(Kenny) had a shot and had a fast car, and it was like, 'This is huge.' He's my brother."
Kenny Walllace will start 17th in the 50th running of the Daytona 500, his best starting spot in 10 tries.
Kenny said Mike was instrumental in getting him into position to qualify for the 500, helping him dice his way through traffic to run as high as 4th-place inside of 10 laps to go in the 60-lap sprint.
"Mike is one of the best there is," Kenny said of his brother's drafting abilities as a driver. "He just inspired me the whole time. There were so many times when people cut me off and I thought I was going to hit them. And then in the end, he was yelling, 'Just go! Just don't run into anybody!'
"What Mike was really good at was two things -- letting me know what lane (people were) trying and what was going on. Because there were a couple times I went to the bottom early with new tires and couldn't get the job done. That was number one. ... The other thing he did was just emotional -- you know, 'Hey, this is the 50th Daytona 500.' ... I think it was just more having somebody on the radio that you really know who has done it and has felt what you felt."
With a full-time Nationwide Series ride with Armando Fitz in the No. 36 Chevrolets, Wallace said that running the way he did on Thursday allowed him to be at peace with himself and his driving abilities despite a roller-coaster 18-year Cup Series career in which he's run the entire slate just 7 times.
"I want to thank (Furniture Row) for letting me prove my talent and send a message to every great race car driver out there that, look at me," he said. "I made the Daytona 500. ...
"The reality of it is that I always tell the truth, and I catch hell for it all the time. But the truth is this: My brother, Mike, finished fourth in the Daytona 500 last year. You've just got to have the equipment, man. That's all there is to it."
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