No. 43 Smithfield Ford Team Hopes to Build on Gains They Made in June Race
Hot off a Top-15 finish in the Brickyard 400, Aric Almirola looks for a strong run at the famed “Tricky Triangle” after missing the first race at the track this season due to injury. Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr. filled in for the injured Almirola in the June race, where he started 16th and scored a 26th-place finish. The No. 43 Smithfield crew made strides in the car’s handling and look to build off what they learned in June to bring Almirola a fast car this weekend.
Almirola made 10 starts at Pocono Raceway in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup series with a best start of 10th (2013) and a best finish of 18th. Almirola scored an 11th-place finish in his lone XFINITY Series start at the “Tricky Triangle” in 2016 and finished fourth in his one Camping World Truck Series start in 2010.
Weekend Chatter
“Pocono is definitely tricky. It’s one of the more difficult tracks on the circuit to get a good feel in the car. We’ve struggled in the past to find a setup that works well in all three turns. I missed the race earlier this year, but the team seemed to make good adjustments during the race to make the Smithfield Ford better. We’ll look to build on that this weekend and work to get a good finish.”
No. 43 Smithfield Ford
About Richard Petty Motorsports
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 one team in competition in the NASCAR premier series with driver Aric Almirola. Almirola will return to the iconic No. 43 Ford with partners Smithfield Foods, STP, United States Air Force and Fresh From Florida. The team is headquartered in Mooresville, N.C.
