Kyle Petty ready to get back behind the wheel of No. 45 Dodge
By SceneDaily Staff
Thursday, August 07, 2008
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Kyle Petty is finally back in a race car, preparing for his first laps at a NASCAR Sprint Cup track since the May race at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
Petty returns to his No. 45 Petty Enterprises Dodge for this weekend's Centurion Boats at The Glen at Watkins Glen International. He missed six races working in the TNT booth, another for his daughter's wedding and then has shared the ride with Terry Labonte and Chad McCumbee as the team sought to dig its way back into the top 35 in owner points.
Now, Petty is ready to take the wheel again. He'll need to qualify on speed for this weekend's race, but there are only 45 cars on the preliminary entry list for the race, so only two will go home.
"Terry and Chad have both done an outstanding job over the last two months," Petty said. "Not only have they moved the team up two spots in owner points, but they’ve also helped advance the No. 45 program. This is a competitive car. We need to continue that through the end of the year. I had a blast in the TNT Sports booth, but I’m ready to get back on the track.”
Petty hasn't worked much with crew chief Stewart Cooper, who took over the role in mid-April, but he's extremely complementary of him and thinks they will handle this weekend well together.
“Stewart Cooper and I only worked together for a handful of races before I stepped into the broadcast booth, but he has amazed me with his demeanor and attitude," Petty said. "For such a young crew chief, he carries himself well beyond his years. It’s not easy to work with three different drivers. He gave Terry and Chad cars that were racy, and I have confidence that he and I will have a good race this weekend at The Glen.”
Petty says that he likes racing on road courses, though he has a top finish of 18th in the last eight races at this track. He won at the track in 1992 and has four top-10 finishes there. And he's optimistic about this weekend.
“I’ve always enjoyed road-course racing, especially at The Glen," he said. "I don’t know if I would want to do it full time because I’ve been racing on ovals for 30 years, but it does give you a nice break during a long season. The Glen is just a great race track with a lot of history.
"It’s one of the few places in the country where we get a chance to race where Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda and Emerson Fittipaldi competed. My 1992 win there is one of my favorites.”
- Mentioned Drivers:
- Kyle Petty
Comments
2 responses to "Kyle Petty ready to get back behind the wheel of No. 45 Dodge"
robert mcleester said:
Aug 7, 2008 at 7:11 PMkyle your a winner in the broadcast booth,its time to consider a full time ride there.
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» Confirm Abuse ReportMark Ernst said:
Aug 8, 2008 at 10:58 AMI agree with you Robert. Stay in the booth and get the right people to get Petty back where it was.
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