MOORESVILLE, N.C. (November 20, 2017) – This past weekend, the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season concluded at the Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway. Martin Truex, Jr. was crowned the champion.
Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) finished the year with driver Aric Almirola and 2017 lead sponsor’s Smithfield Foods, U.S. Air Force, STP and Fresh From Florida.
Sunday night, Almirola and the No. 43 Smithfield team finished 18th.
Almirola completed the season with three Top-Five finishes, highlighted by a fourth-place finish in the Daytona 500. Almirola also collected six Top-10 finishes in 29 races after suffering a back injury at the Kansas Speedway in early May. Prior to the devastating accident, the team had two consecutive Top-10 finishes at Richmond and at Talladega- where he finished fifth.
Almirola returned to the car at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in mid-July and one week later finished 13th in the Brickyard 400 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The team found success late in the 2017 season with another Top-Five at Talladega and Top-10 results at Kansas and Phoenix.
Regan Smith competed in two races (Charlotte in May and Dover in June) in the No. 43, filling in for Almirola. Smith was running in the Top-10 late in the Dover race before cutting a tire. Road course driver, Billy Johnson, raced at Sonoma.
RPM made history when Darrell “Bubba” Wallace, Jr. competed in four races in the summer. Wallace finished 11th at the Kentucky Speedway in his final start.
The introduction to Wallace led the organization to hire him. The announcement was made on October 25. Wallace, 24, will compete full-time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and for the Sunoco Rookie of The Year beginning at the 2018 Daytona 500.
The organization welcomed new partner, Click n’ Close, in early November to join the many partners of Petty.
Moving into December, RPM continues to gain momentum as they prepare for the 2018 season opener in Daytona.
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 wheels 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
