No. 43 Smithfield Ford Prepared to Run Up Front
The last time Aric Almirola went superspeedway racing, he left Daytona International Speedway with a XFINITY Series win and a Top-15 finish in the Sprint Cup Series. With a win in both Cup and XFINITY, superspeedways are tracks that Almirola has proved to excel. During the season’s first visit to Talladega, Almirola ran with the leaders but was taken out in a late-race accident and finished in 27th place. Returning this weekend, he will look to once again run up front in the No. 43 Smithfield Ford and score the strong finish that he missed out on in the spring.
Almirola has 13 Sprint Cup Series starts at Talladega Superspeedway. He scored his best finish of 10th place in the spring race of 2013. For the fall race of that same season, Almirola earned his best starting spot when he started first.
Fans will have the opportunity to see Almirola when he judges the Whole Hog Challenge at the Smithfield Display in Talladega Superspeedway’s Fan Midway. Pre-selected contestants will compete against one another to eat eight Smithfield ribs the fastest. The winner, crowned by Almirola, will move on to participate in the final Whole Hog Challenge Championship in Miami at the end of the season.
When: Sunday, October 23, 10:15 – 10:45 AM
Where: Smithfield Display, Talladega Superspeedway
“Talladega is very stressful, but we get used to it. It’s part of the sport. We go there twice a year, and we know what to expect when we get there. We also go to Daytona twice, but they’re very different tracks. The cars don’t need to handle as well at Talladega; handling really comes into play at Daytona. But, at Talladega, it’s all about having a really fast car and drafting well. The whole weekend leading up to the race is actually pretty relaxed and stress free compared to most weekends. Then, when we show up to race Sunday, it starts to get pretty intense. But, for the most part, it’s a good weekend. I always enjoy superspeedway racing, and I’ve been pretty successful at it. So I’m ready to get our No. 43 Smithfield Ford down there.”
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. The team is headquartered in Mooresville, N.C.
