Show your support.
Buzz this article up.
It has been clear for months that Richard Petty Motorsports wasn’t going to be a Dodge team much longer. Petty complained about missed payments and flatly said he was shopping the team.
But nobody expected it to join forces with Yates Racing a year after it had merged with Gillett Evernham Motorsports.
The new alliance will use Ford engines and still will be called Richard Petty Motorsports.
The surprise move offered many more questions than answers.
Per NASCAR’s mandate, Roush Fenway Racing has to trim its operation from five teams to four at the end of this season. And while everyone figured the No. 26 team would shift over to Yates Racing, that is not going to happen. Chicago Tribune
Under the agreement announced Thursday, Yates driver Paul Menard will join RPM drivers Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler and A.J. Allmendinger next year.
RPM was formed in January when Petty Holdings merged with Gillett Evernham Motorsports.
“This is a pretty big deal for us,” Petty said. “We’re thrilled to partner with Ford. We’ve talked with a lot of folks, but in the end it came down to the success the Gilletts and I think we can achieve with Ford Racing.”
The switch from Dodge to Ford should ease some of the financial pressure felt by RPM since Chrysler’s Chapter 11 filing. RPM laid off employees and cut salaries after Chrysler filed for bankruptcy protection.
“If you are going to compete with the other teams in this sport, you need a lot of support,” said RPM managing partner Foster Gillett. “We bring a lot to this relationship as well. We’ve won twice this season and the power of Richard Petty is hard to beat, plus we have the support of some of the biggest names in corporate in America.”
The merger leaves RPM driver Reed Sorenson and former NASCAR champion Bobby Labonte — who has been driving for Yates — looking for work while bringing Kahne full circle with Ford. The Associated Press
“I am very pleased that Richard Petty Motorsports has made the decision to switch to Ford for the 2010 season,” said Brian Wolfe, director of Ford North America Motorsports. “They had choices to consider other than Ford and it’s gratifying to us that they have enough faith in the Ford Motor Co. and what we’re doing to make the switch. We believe we can provide them with superior analytical tools and powertrain, and we will work with them closely on the technical front to help them become even more competitive than they are.
“What’s also really cool to me is the chance to have someone with the class and the legacy of Richard Petty involved with Ford. Combine that with the chance to work with the Gillett family, who we have great respect for, and add some great drivers to the Ford camp, well, it’s hard not to be excited about this opportunity.”
Yates Racing, formerly known as Robert Yates Racing, owns 57 wins and nearly 50 poles as well as a Sprint Cup Championship in more than 20 years of racing. The team is owned by Doug Yates and Max Jones, who jointly took the reins after Doug’s father, Robert Yates, retired following the 2007 season.
“This is certainly a great opportunity for both Yates Racing as well as Ford Racing. I have had a long-term relationship with Ford and look forward to continuing that relationship at Richard Petty Motorsports,” Jones said. “Over the coming weeks we will continue to work with Ford and Richard Petty to lay out the best plan for Paul Menard and all of the employees at Yates Racing. We will continue to field both the No. 98 and No. 96 Ford Fusions for the remainder of the season and look forward to continued success on the track with Paul, Bobby Labonte and Erik Darnell.” NASCAR
