Smithfield Ford is 12th in Points Following Daytona
Aric Almirola is riding the momentum of a 12th-place finish in the No. 43 Smithfield Ford Fusion during the 2016 season-opener in Daytona. Currently sitting 12th in points, the team will look to jump higher in the standings with another strong run at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The Richard Petty Motorsports team came off of a solid 2015 season as the highest-earning points team that was not in The Chase. To get a jump on the competition to have this season be even more successful, a significant amount of time at the shop in Mooresville, N.C during the off-season was spent working of the intermediate track package for both Sprint Cup Series teams. Between the team’s technical advancements and the performance of the No. 43 Smithfield team during Speedweeks, confidence is high going into Sunday’s 500-mile race.
Almirola has five Sprint Cup Series starts under his belt at Atlanta Motor Speedway. With one Top-10 finish at the track, finishing ninth in the 2014 race, Almirola has no DNFs at the intermediate track. Almirola also ran two XFINITY Series races at the 1.5-mile track, with his top finish of eighth coming from the 2011 race.
When: Sunday, February 28 from 10:15 a.m.
Where: Smithfield Display in the Fan Midway at Atlanta Motor Speedway
A performance and marketing driven company, Richard Petty Motorsports, co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty and successful business entrepreneur Andrew Murstein, 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 with drivers Aric Almirola and Brian Scott. Almirola will return to the iconic No. 43 Ford with partners Smithfield Foods, STP, United States Air Force and the “Fresh From Florida” campaign. Scott will make his debut with the team and drive the Petty Family No. 44 Ford. Albertsons Companies, Shore Lodge, Twisted Tea and GoBowling.com will join Scott as he competes for Rookie of the Year in his first full-time season in the Sprint Cup Series. Richard Petty Motorsports will also field the No. 43 Ford Mustang in the NASCAR XFINITY Series with driver Jeb Burton, who will compete for Rookie of the Year in his first full-time season with partner J. Streicher. The team is headquartered in Mooresville, N.C.
