Focused on Win to Advance to the Contender Round in Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup
Aric Almirola and the No. 43 team had a strong showing in Chicago before an engine failure resulted in a 41st-place finish. Now 16th in points and 23 points outside of the Top-12, Almirola and the team are focused on winning in the next two races in order to advance to the Contender Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Almirola will do all he can to get the No. 43 Smithfield Ford into Victory Lane and secure his spot in the Contender Round.
Almirola has eight starts at the mile track and scored one Top-Five finish in the summer race in 2013. Circled as one of the tougher tracks for this team during The Chase, the team will focus on their notes from July and simulation to get the best car they can this weekend.
At @NHMS @Aric_Almirola hopes to go from heartache to victory in #43 @SmithfieldFoods Ford to advance to #Contender rnd. #43AANation #NASCAR
@Aric Almirola hopes to go from heartache to victory at @New Hampshire Motor Speedway to advance to the #Contender round in The #Chase for the @NASCAR @Sprint Cup.
“Last weekend was so heartbreaking, but it confirmed what we already knew in that we belong in this Chase. Now, we have to regroup and change our goal to winning. There is a possibility of getting in on points, but it is slim, so we need to focus on winning. New Hampshire isn’t our best track in The Chase. I don’t think we learned much in the July race that we can transfer to this weekend. We really need to start fresh. It is the one track I have been nervous about in The Chase. I enjoy racing at New Hampshire and have run well there in the past. For whatever reason, the last couple of years we have had a hard time getting a hold of that race track. Hopefully, Trent (Owens) and the boys will come up with something that will turn the middle like we need to and drive off the corners, and we’ll have a good day. At this point, we need to do whatever we can to win the race.”
No. 43 Smithfield Ford
A performance and marketing driven company, 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. Aric Almirola pilots the famous No. 43 Ford Fusion with primary partners Smithfield Foods, U.S. Air Force, STP, Strike Ten Entertainment and Fresh From Florida, and Marcos Ambrose drives the No. 9 machine with primary partners STANLEY, DEWALT, Mac Tools and Twisted Tea. In addition, Dakoda Armstrong wheels the No. 43 WinField Ford Mustang full-time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The team is headquartered in Concord, N.C.