It wasn’t very long ago that many questioned if Richard Petty Motorsports would even finish the 2010 season.
Elliott Sadler, Paul Menard and Kasey Kahne left RPM at the end of 2010. Also sponsors choosing to go a different direction; there were no guarantees RPM would be at Daytona.
Then Marcos Ambrose announced even with the uncertainty he would be joining RPM. AJ Allmendinger primary sponsor Best Buy re-signed with the team. Stanley tools left Roush Fenway Racing and moved to RPM.
Suddenly the restructuring that occurred at the top seemed to be reassuring not only sponsors but RPM’s employees that RPM was here to stay.
Now three races into the season and Allmendinger finished 11th and Ambrose finished 37th after getting caught up in a wreck at Daytona. At Phoenix International Raceway, Allmendinger finished ninth and Ambrose finished 16th.
At Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Ford flexed its muscle and Ambrose qualified third and Allmendinger started 15th.
Both drivers though ran in the top 10 for most of the day and Ambrose scored his first top five finish at RPM and Allmendinger finished ninth.
Ambrose after the race talked about his solid run at PIR. “I’m happy we got a finish. We got in a hole after Daytona and we just had to finish today. It was a good first day and a good learning experience with Todd Parrott. We had good communication and I feel like we’ve got a good vibe going now.”
Yes, that’s right RPM has a good vibe right now. With Alllmendinger sitting third in the standings after LVMS and Ambrose climbing the standings is it possible that one or both could make the Chase?
It would be remarkable after the turmoil that this organization has faced the last six months. It shouldn’t surprise you though.
Allmendinger is more than capable of running for wins on a week to week basis. In the past the equipment wasn’t very good. So far we are seeing the hard work of the people in the shop paying off.
Also, this organization went from a four car team to a two car team. Sometimes less is more and you can look at Earnhardt Ganassi Racing as a prime example. Two organizations that were four car teams downsized to two teams and have found success.
RPM essentially has done the same thing. With just two cars the focus is smaller and in some ways allows teams to maybe find things they missed with four car team.
Nobody expects them to contend for the Chase let alone the title but that might be exactly the motivation needed.
It’s a good thing for this sport when RPM is running up front. The name alone draws in interests from old school fans and sponsors.
It’s a very long season and there is still a lot to be decided but if Allmendinger and Ambrose run like they did at LVMS; making the Chase won’t be such a long shot. The key for them is to sustain this throughout the season. A few good races don’t define a season just as much as a few bad races.
We have seen them do this before start off hot but cool off as the season wore on.
There are still a lot of questions for this organization as they head forward. One thing is for sure RPM is back and ready to contend for race wins and possibly the title.
Photo:nascar.com
quote: richardpettymotorsports.com
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