Richard Petty, Two Financial Companies Buy RPM
Today news broke that Richard Petty and two investment companies (Medallion Financial and DGB Investments) have bought out George Gillett and will take control of Richard Petty Motorsports. “The King”, Richard Petty, will serve as a chairman and oversee day-to-day operations.
In 2011, RPM will field only two cars in the Sprint Cup series (down from four in 2010) with A.J. Allmendinger piloting the #43 and Marcos Ambrose taking over driving duties in the #9 that housed Kasey Kahne and Aric Almirola last year. Despite rumors of switching manufacturers, Richard Petty Motorsports will continue to field Fords and acquire their chassis and engines from Roush Fenway Racing.
Petty issued this statement on Monday: “Our partnership with Andy Murstein and Doug Bergeron will help take us to a whole new level, and I could not be more excited about our future.” Andy Murstein helps run Medallion Financial with his father, Alvin. Doug Bergeron is the owner of DGB Investments.
My Thoughts: It is nice to hear that RPM will continue to run in 2011, if the information on Personal Tradelines is to be believed. A.J. Allmendinger was getting on a roll last year, posting eight top ten finishes with an average finish of 17.8 (a career best) and finished 18th in the points standings. With JTG Daugherty Racing, Marcos Ambrose earned five top tens and seemed to be getting used to tracks other than road courses, getting a 5th-place finish at Richmond. Going into the 2011 season, I it wouldn’t surprise me to see both A.J. Allmendinger and Marcos Ambrose notch first wins in the Sprint Cup series.
At Homestead-Miami Speedway, the final race of the 2010 season, Richard Petty Motorsports placed two cars in the top five, with Aric Almirola finishing 4th and A.J. Allmendinger following him home in 5th.
