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On the sideline again, Aric Almirola doesn’t regret career decisions
By Bob Pockrass - Associate Editor
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Aric Almirola ran the first seven races of the NASCAR Sprint Cup season for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing.
Jeff Robinson
NASCAR Scene
Aric Almirola’s career has taken several twists and turns as he has driven in 25 NASCAR Cup races for three different organizations in the last three years. It’s been a strange ride for the 25-year-old, who now finds himself at least temporarily on the sidelines now that Earnhardt Ganassi Racing has suspended operations of the No. 8 car.
Almirola originally was part of Joe Gibbs Racing’s diversity program and made his Cup debut with JGR at Las Vegas in 2007. When it looked as if JGR wouldn’t have room for him on the Cup side, he signed with Ginn Racing in July 2007 to co-drive the No. 01 car with Mark Martin. A week later, he was part of Dale Earnhardt Inc. after the DEI-Ginn merger and drove the No. 01 in five races.
Last year, he shared the No. 8 with Martin and competed in 12 events. Last July, Martin announced he would leave DEI for a full-time ride at Hendrick Motorsports in 2009, and DEI named Almirola as the full-time driver of the No. 8 for 2009 and pledged to find him sponsorship.
Then DEI merged with Chip Ganassi Racing, and Almirola ended up with a ride that was not fully funded. The result? Seven races into the season, and the car has been parked until sponsorship can be found.
So many ups. So many downs. So much potential for a Cup career once again put on hold.
“I don’t regret anything,” Almirola said Wednesday in a phone interview with a handful of reporters. “I think I’m a better race-car driver and a lot more knowledgeable now than I ever have been. And I don’t regret anything that I’ve ever done in my career. Everything happens for a reason, and this is just a bump in the road.
“Hopefully one day I will be able to look back at this and say, ‘Man, that was rough times. I’m glad that’s over with.’”
Almirola, who had an eighth-place finish at Bristol last year, had no top-20 finishes this year and was 37th in points – outside the top 35 and one of the guaranteed spots – after seven events.
The ban on testing at many tracks likely didn’t help his chances to be successful.
“The good race teams are always going to be your good race teams, but when you bring somebody in like myself that’s new and a rookie, it takes time,” Almirola said. “Racing is one thing, but 10 years ago, when you were a rookie in the series, you got to go to seven two-day tests and five one-day tests at the race track that you were actually going to go race at.
“If you knew you were going to struggle at [a particular track], you could go and spend two days there and just run until you can’t stand to run no more and try to get better at that race track and improve your performance. Instead of running 20th or 25th, you’d have a shot to go there and run top 10. It helps your overall performance. And without a doubt, performance attracts sponsors. That’s something that could have helped or not helped, but it was the same for everybody.”
But it possibly put more pressure on Almirola, who knew this day could come when he started the season. Last month, the team was informed that Texas could be its last race if sponsorship wasn’t found, and that became a reality on Tuesday.
“I guess surprised wouldn’t be the right word because I’ve been kept abreast of everything that’s been going on, and it wasn’t a secret that we were looking for sponsors,” Almirola said. “Surprised is not the right word, but [there’s] definitely a little bit of a disappointment because I’m a race-car driver and I love to race, so I’d love to do nothing more than be at the race track every weekend racing.
“But I understand the situation for sure. And I understand that it takes a lot of money to show up at the race track every week, and when you don’t have it, you don’t have it so you’ve got to work hard to go try and find it.”
Almirola is unsure of what his next step will be.
“It’s so new and so fresh that I haven’t gave it a whole lot of thought,” Almirola said. “I know that I don’t want to quit. I know I want to drive race cars for a living. I know that is what I want to do.
“I’m in a unique situation where it’s important for us to go get sponsors and go race. I’ve been extremely appreciative of the sponsors that I’ve gotten a chance to work with up until this point and look forward to continue to work with new sponsors, whatever series, whatever it takes.”
The Tampa, Fla., native has competed in only 20 races in NASCAR national series events since the beginning of last year.
“Every day that I’m in a race car, I feel like I’m learning something new and getting better,” Almirola said. “Seat time is extremely important to me. But it costs money, even to go test. The moral of the story or the bottom line is we need sponsors to be able to do those kind of things. Every day that goes by that I’m not in a race car that somebody else is, I feel like I’m at a disadvantage.”
Almirola said he has talked with many potential sponsors and is excited about the opportunities. So why should people sponsor him?
“The biggest thing is I’m willing to work with them,” Almirola said. “I love racing, and I value every second that I’m on the race track. I want a chance to be branded. I don’t think that I’ve worked with any particular one sponsor to actually be branded.
“I want the opportunity to be able to do that – when they think of a particular sponsor, I want them to think of Aric Almirola. I think that I’m capable of doing that and I think that the stuff that I’ve learned since I’ve been Truck racing and Nationwide racing and the few Cup races that I have run, I feel like I have learned a lot to make myself a better race-car driver.”
Mentioned Drivers: Aric Almirola
2009 Sprint Cup Race for the Chase Standings
Driver Standings after the AMP Energy 500
| 1 | Jimmie Johnson | 6248 |
| 2 | Mark Martin | -184 |
| 3 | Jeff Gordon | -192 |
| 4 | Juan Pablo Montoya | -239 |
| 5 | Tony Stewart | -279 |
| 6 | Kurt Busch | -312 |
| 7 | Greg Biffle | -340 |
| 8 | Ryan Newman | -402 |
| 9 | Kasey Kahne | -414 |
| 10 | Carl Edwards | -437 |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin | -448 |
| 12 | Brian Vickers | -556 |
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3 responses to "On the sideline again, Aric Almirola doesn’t regret career decisions". Post a Comment.
bill thompson said:
Apr 9, 2009 at 9:33 PMgood luck! hey they need a good driver for the 88,19,26,55
Report as AbuseReport Abuse
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» Confirm Abuse ReportTeema H. said:
Apr 9, 2009 at 9:57 PMNo comment needed...the DEI versus Dale Jr fans will fill this thread up....LMAOAthem...
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This feature is intended to allow you to report comments that are abusive in terms of foul/vulgar language, harassment, racial/religious prejudice and any words/phrases of a related nature. This feature should not be used to report users who simply make a comment about your favorite driver, with which you do not agree. Commenting is a forum in which we can all express our opinions. Reporting abuse of others should be done with this in mind.
» Confirm Abuse ReportDawn Dunn said:
Apr 10, 2009 at 9:48 AMYou are so right Bill............LOL
Report as AbuseAric could do a much better job than those listed above. I hope that I don't get my head chewed off by their fans. Aric is an intelligent guy, he is personable and would do a sponsor good as a spokesperson, let alone drive the wheels off the car.
Good luck Aric.
Report Abuse
This feature is intended to allow you to report comments that are abusive in terms of foul/vulgar language, harassment, racial/religious prejudice and any words/phrases of a related nature. This feature should not be used to report users who simply make a comment about your favorite driver, with which you do not agree. Commenting is a forum in which we can all express our opinions. Reporting abuse of others should be done with this in mind.
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