Richard Petty Motorsports will continue its relationship with Ford Performance. An announcement is expected at the team’s Mooresville, N.C. shop on Tuesday. The organization enjoys a storied past under the guidance of seven-time NASCAR champion Richard Petty. RPM currently fields two Sprint Cup teams and an Xfinity Series program. The foundation of RPM stems from Evernham Motorsports, which debuted in 2000. RPM evolved from the four-Dodge team from Gillett Evernham Motorsports and began making the transition to Ford at the end of the 2009 season. The organization is currently evaluating the status of the #9 Ford as Sam Hornish Jr. has struggled to remain in the top 25 despite a change of crew chiefs. The relationship with Ford Performance and the King dates back to 1969 when Petty piloted the #43 Ford Torino to nine wins and a second-place finish in the point standings to fellow Ford racer David Pearson.(Motorsport)(10-4-2015)
UPDATE: Key takeaways from the Ford extension annoucement with Richard Petty Motorsports:
– The extension is a multiyear agreement vs one year agreements in the past.
– RPM will run Roush Yates Engines.
– RPM are continuing to work on a services agreement with Roush Fenway Racing.
“The goals and vision for Ford Performance are the same that we have here at Richard Petty Motorsports, win races and compete for championships and ultimately be champions. We both want to use technology and engineering to better our cars and teams to give our drivers the best chance to win races and championships.” – Brian Moffit, CEO.(RPM Facebook)
AND Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) and Ford Performance announced today their commitment to winning races and championships together in an extension that will see the most storied organization in NASCAR continue to carry the iconic blue oval in years to come. The announcement ensures that Richard Petty Motorsports’ two NASCAR Sprint Cup race teams and its XFINITY Series race team will continue to have the championship caliber engineering, technology and resources of Ford Performance. The partnership will also allow RPM to be leaders in race engineering, technology and to build for the future. Over the past year, officials from RPM and Ford Performance have worked diligently toward building a mutually beneficial relationship that has seen immediate results. Richard Petty Motorsports and Ford Performance have worked together in the wind tunnel, on aerodynamic packages and on collecting engineering data. The result has been increased consistency and performance for the organization proven by Aric Almirola and the #43 Ford Fusion having their most consistent season together and highest average finish to date.
“Our relationship with Ford Performance has a history, a present and now a future of winning races and competing for championships,” said Richard Petty, co-owner, Richard Petty Motorsports. “As we took on additional internal responsibilities within our organization over the past 12 months, Dave Pericak and his team at Ford Performance have been with us supporting Richard Petty Motorsports each step of the way. And to know they will continue to be our partner is very important to our combined desire to make RPM a championship caliber organization.
Ford Performance has been the manufacture partner of RPM since 2010 and their roots with Richard Petty date back to 1969 when “The King” won nine times in a Ford Torino on his way to a runner-up finish in the championship. Ford Performance and RPM have three wins in the Sprint Cup Series and two wins in the XFINITY Series together, along with a total of 10 poles in both series. “Richard Petty Motorsports has made steady progress since joining our program, and we’re looking forward to seeing them take that next step to being a consistent Chase participant,” said Dave Pericak, director, Ford Performance. “We feel they have the people in place to achieve that goal, and we’re going to do everything we can to provide them the resources to make that happen.”(RPM)(10-6-2015)
