Petty downsizes with hopes of two-car team in 2018

Aric Almirola

For the last few years, Richard Petty Motorsports has been a two-car team, but starts the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series as a one-car operation.

Since 2009 RPM has scored five victories from three different drivers. The most recent was Aric Almirola's 2014 Coke Zero 400 victory behind the wheel of the iconic No. 43 Ford.

When Marcos Ambrose, who scored two wins for Petty, left racing to return to his native Australia after the 2014 season, he was replaced by Sam Hornish Jr., who was replaced by Brian Scott in 2016.

Scott got the ride in part because he had the sponsorship money to help fund the No. 44 team.

Near the end of last season, Scott announced his retirement from the sport.

"I'm so grateful to have had the opportunity to drive for Richard Petty Motorsports," Scott said last year.

Soon after Scott's announcement, Petty said he would field only one car, Almirola's No. 43, for the 2017 season.

Petty and his associates said this wasn't the beginning of the end, but a chance for the team to rebuild.

"We evaluated how to best improve our on-track product," said Brian Moffitt, who is CEO of RPM. "We feel that it's in the best interest of our partners and for Richard Petty Motorsports to focus our resources on the No. 43 Ford."

Thanks to the NASCAR charter system, RPM is still making money on its second entry, even though there is only one car in the race shop.

Petty leased the No. 44 charter to the No. 32 Go Fas Racing Ford this season ensuring a revenue flow from its second charter.

Matt DiBenedetto drives the No. 32 entry and is guaranteed a starting position in every race. He starts 25th in Sunday's Daytona 500.

Almirola will start 13th on Row 7 in Sunday's 200-lap run over Daytona's 2.5-mile tri-oval.

Charters were introduced by NASCAR in 2016 to give established teams an established value and RPM took full advantage of the opportunity.

"A concentrated effort on one team will position us for improvement while giving us adequate time to reestablish our two-car team in 2018," Moffitt said.
Almirola, who started driving the No. 43 Ford in 2012, has no problems with the decision with the cutback.

"It's been a little bit different, but I think it's been good, too," Almirola said recently at Daytona International Speedway. "When I go in the shop and you look around and all of the focus, whether it's the fab shop or the engineering department or just the guys on the shop floor assembling race cars it's all focused on the No. 43 car."

So in effect, Almirola and his car are now getting all the attention from the mechanics and engineers at RPM, plus support from Ford.

"Every idea that comes through the shop or every ounce of overtime or extra effort is put into one car and I think that's going to hopefully pay off for us," he said.

"I think management has had to make some tough decisions to scale back to one car, but it was all done in an effort to try and be better and try to get the 43 car to where it needs to be and perform at a high level." Daytona Beach News Journal