Petty Enterprises
|
|
| owner |
Kyle Petty Richard Petty |
| Racing series | Sprint Cup |
| Championships | 10 (Sprint Cup) |
| Start number (s) | # 43, # 45 (Sprint Cup) |
| driver |
Bobby Labonte (# 43 Sprint) Kyle Petty (# 45 Sprint) |
| Manufacturer | Dodge |
| Place of the workshop | Randleman , North Carolina |
| Homepage | www.pettyracing.com |
Petty Enterprises was a NASCAR team headquartered in Randleman , Randolph County , North Carolina . The team was led by Richard Petty and his son Kyle and last fielded two cars in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season : A number 43 Dodge driven by Bobby Labonte and a second number 45 Dodge, mainly driven by Kyle Petty was driven himself. In the course of a merger with Evernham Gillett Racing at the beginning of the 2009 season, the team was dissolved.
History of the company
The racing team was founded in 1949 by Lee Petty under the name Lee Petty Engineering . In the same year Lee Petty took part in the then new NASCAR Strictly Stock Championship and won in the fifth race at Heidelberg Raceway . Lee Petty finished the season second in the points.
In 1953 Lee Petty began using a second vehicle. It was a Plymouth that was driven by Jimmie Lewallen. Lee achieved five wins in the 1953 season, in 1954 he won the championship with his own team. Lee Petty and his team were one of the best of his time. Pilots like Tiny Lund , Bill Mutz and Ralph Earnhardt also drove for Lee Petty Engineering.
Between 1954 and 1979 Petty Enterprises won ten championships in the top division of NASCAR, which was called Grand National until 1970 and then Winston Cup . Lee Petty experienced three of these championships in car number 42, and seven by his son Richard in car number 43.
The following years were the weakest in Petty Enterprises history. At the end of the 1983 season, Richard Petty left his own team, but returned in 1986. However, he never won a race again. Son Kyle also left the team for a few years to drive for the Wood Brothers . In 1997 Kyle returned to Petty Enterprises in his own car in an organization he called PE2. The car was later officially incorporated into Petty Enterprises and Kyle became Chief Executive Officer of the racing team, which has only won three races since Richard Petty's retirement.
In 2006, Petty Enterprises hired Bobby Labonte to drive the number 43 and hired Robbie Loomis to become Bobby Labonte 's crew chief. Bobby Labonte finished the 2006 season 21st in the points, Kyle Petty 32nd overall.
In the 2009 season, Petty Enterprises no longer appeared in the Sprint Cup as an independent team, but went over to the Gillett Evernham Motorsports team . The new team is named Richard Petty Motorsports .
Petty blue
The car with the starting number 43 is known for its blue color, which Richard Petty calls "Petty Blue" and was created by the family. The color actually came about through an “accident”, because Petty didn't have enough white and dark blue to paint the whole car with one of the colors, so he mixed the colors and the well-known light blue, the Petty blue, was created. Rumor has it that Petty would not have accepted the contract with long-time sponsor STP if they had asked for the car to be changed. As a compromise, a red and blue car was created.
History of cars
Car # 1
| driver | Years | sponsor | brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dick Brooks | 1985 | Petty Enterprises | ford |
| Morgan Shepherd | 1985 | Petty Enterprises | ford |
Car # 7
| driver | Years | sponsor | brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kyle Petty | 1983-1984 | 7-11 | Pontiac / Ford |
Car # 11
| driver | Years | sponsor | brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buddy Baker | 1971-1972 | Dodge / STP | Dodge |
Car # 40
| driver | Years | sponsor | brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pete Hamilton | 1970 | Plymouth |
Car # 42
| driver | Years | sponsor | brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lee Petty | 1949-1964 | Petty Enterprises | Various |
| Richard Petty | 1965 | Petty Enterprises | Plymouth |
| Marvin Panch | 1966 | Petty Enterprises | Plymouth |
| Dan Gurney | 1970 | Petty Enterprises | Plymouth |
| Kyle Petty | 1979-1982 | STP | Various |
Car # 43
| driver | Years | sponsor | brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Petty | 1958-1983; 1986-1992 | Chrysler Corp./STP | Various |
| Wally Dallenbach Jr. / John Andretti | 1994 | STP | Pontiac |
| Bobby Hamilton | 1995-1997 | STP | Pontiac |
| John Andretti | 1998-2003 | STP / Cheerios | Pontiac / Dodge |
| Christian Fittipaldi | 2003 | Cheerios / Betty Crocker | Dodge |
| Jeff Green | 2003-2005 | Cheerios / Betty Crocker | Dodge |
| Bobby Labonte | 2006-2008 | Cheerios / Betty Crocker | Dodge |
| Reed Sorenson | 2009- | Cheerios / Betty Crocker | Dodge |
Car # 44
| driver | Years | sponsor | brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rick Wilson | 1993 | STP | Pontiac |
| Kyle Petty | 1997-2000 | Hot Wheels | Pontiac |
| Steve Grissom | 2000 | Hot Wheels | Pontiac |
| Buckshot Jones | 2001-2002 | Georgia-Pacific | Dodge |
| Jerry Nadeau | 2002 | Georgia Pacific | Dodge |
| Christian Fittipaldi | 2003 | Bugles | Dodge |
| AJ Allmendinger | 2009 | Valvoline | Dodge |
Car # 45
| driver | Years | sponsor | brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adam Petty | 2000 | sprint | Chevrolet |
| Kyle Petty | 2000 | sprint | Pontiac |
| Kyle Petty | 2001-2002 | sprint | Dodge |
| Kyle Petty | 2003-2005 | Georgia Pacific | Dodge |
| Kyle Petty | 2006 | Various | Dodge |
| Kyle Petty | 2007 | Various | Dodge |
Individual evidence
- ↑ Petty Enterprises is incorporated into GEM. www.motorsport-total.com, accessed on January 1, 2009 .
