#8-Aric Almirola sure didn’t look like a driver who had not competed in more than four months. In only his seventh career Sprint Cup start the 24-year-old U.S. Army driver took on one of NASCAR’s toughest tracks Sunday and psoted an eighth-place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway. “Awesome, just awesome,” said crew chief Tony Gibson. “Aric drove the wheels off that Army Chevrolet. We had a decent car, not a great one. But Aric drove both patiently and hard. He has talent. The team believes in him and he believes in us. He is in the future and we’re just happy that he is driving our stuff.” Almirola’s last Cup race was in November in Phoenix. “These guys on this Army team deserve the credit,” said Almirola, who celebrated his 24th birthday on Friday. “I had a good car with a lot of speed and didn’t have to hustle it. It was a lot of fun out there and I want to thank the U.S. Army, DEI, Tony (Gibson) and all the guys on this team for believing in me. The pit stops were excellent all day.” Almirola will also drive the #8 Chevy in the next Cup race at Martinsville Speedway (March 30) as part of his 12-race schedule with Dale Earnhardt Inc. He is sharing the ride with veteran Mark Martin. Almirola started the race from the 16th position and drove in the top 15 for nearly the entire race. Almirola’s previous best finish in a Cup race was 26th in Phoenix last fall.(DEI PR)(3-17-2008)
