Smithfield Team Eyes Superspeedway Win
Always a crapshoot, Aric Almirola and the No. 43 Smithfield Ford team hope to have luck on their side and score a top finish this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway. Almirola and team showed speed in the draft earlier this year but contact on the last lap relegated the team to a 15th-place finish. In the last seven races, they have proved successful. An accident in New Hampshire and power steering leak in Kansas were the only finishes outside the Top-10 for the team since Richmond. Hoping to end the season with momentum and the top spot outside of the Chase, Almirola looks to compete for the lead again this weekend.
Almirola has 11 Sprint Cup Series starts at Talladega where he scored one Top-10 and five Top-15 finishes. He also has three starts in the XFINITY Series where he scored two Top-10 finishes. He made four starts in the Truck Series and tallied two Top-Two finishes.
Fans at the Talladega Superspeedway will have multiple chances to see Almirola. On Saturday, Almirola will join AJ Allmendinger, Ryan Blaney and Danica Patrick for the Youth Autograph Session at 10:45 a.m. The first 100 children (12 and under only) to pick up a wristband at the main Guest Services Office located at OV Hill South Grandstand Section L will have the chance to get an autograph. Wristband distribution will begin Friday when the grandstands open. Also on Saturday, Almirola will visit the Honda display at 11:20 a.m.
Sunday, Almirola will judge the 14th Whole Hog Challenge at 10:35 a.m. Fans can sign up to compete throughout the weekend at the Smithfield display in the fan zone. Contestants will compete in the eating contest for a trip to Miami where they have the chance to be crowned Champion and attend the season opener in 2016.
Fans will also have the privilege of seeing the U.S. Air Force provide a B-2 Stealth Bomber for the flyover as part of the pre-race ceremonies for the CampingWorld.com 500. The B-2 Stealth Bomber is one of the most expensive and advanced bombers in the world.
“We’ve been running really well lately and are working hard to keep the momentum through the end of the season. Talladega is such a crapshoot. You have to make sure you stay out of trouble and be in the right place at the end of the race. We’ve shown that we have speed on superspeedways, so we’ll be cautiously aggressive to make sure we make it to the end and have a shot at going for the win. As we have said since Richmond, our goal this season is to spoil the Chase with a win. There will be a lot of drivers fighting for that this weekend, and we plan to be in the mix.”
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. Aric Almirola pilots the famous No. 43 Ford Fusion with primary partners Smithfield Foods, U.S. Air Force, STP and Fresh From Florida, and Sam Hornish Jr. drives the No. 9 machine with primary partners Medallion Bank and Twisted Tea. In addition, Dakoda Armstrong wheels the No. 43 WinField Ford Mustang full-time in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. The team is headquartered in Mooresville, N.C.
