Derek Daly consults Petty team

Richard Petty and Derek Daly

Former IndyCar driver, Derek Daly, was in the heart of NASCAR country last week working with the employees of Richard Petty Motorsports. Daly was brought in by Smithfield Foods, Petty's primary sponsor of the number 43 car driven by Aric Almirola. The primary purpose was to get all employees aligned for the purpose of continuing the growth of Richard Petty Motorsports in light of the recent announcement that Smithfield Foods has made a three year commitment to be their primary sponsor.

"Derek has an innate understanding on how to motivate and align teams of people and we thought it would be a strong investment on our behalf to have him work directly with all the team's employees," said Bob Weber, Director of Business Development, Smithfield Foods. "We are making a considerable investment with Richard Petty and I have known and admired Derek's program for years. We believed that we could help our return on investment by integrating Derek directly into the team."

Whenever he does programs like this Daly likes to spend time with the team's senior managers. Teams all have issues and problems and Daly positions himself to be part of their solution. Brian Moffitt (Team manager) and Sammy Johns (Director of Competition) are united in their drive and conviction that RPM can be a consistent winning force in NASCAR again. Sometimes an outsider can outline the vision and message in a more lasting way and that was Daly's focus during the event.

"Everyone was so impressed with his presentation. Sammy and I were energized by all the employees thanking us for the opportunities that are ahead of us," commented Brian Moffitt – Team Manager.

"I have sat through a lot of presentations in the past and I truly have to say that Derek's was by far the most inspiring I have attended. The feedback we have received from all the employees has been nothing but great," said Sammy Johns, Director of Competition.

Daly will continue to work with the team during the year with the focus being on human capital development.

Richard Petty Motorsports, co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty and successful business entrepreneurs Andrew Murstein and Douglas Bergeron, is one of the most recognized brands in all of motorsports. With a history of over 200 wins and business partnerships with national and global leaders, today the race operation fields two teams in competition in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The team is headquartered in Concord, N.C. www.richardpettymotorsports.com.