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New partnership invokes emotions for Pettys, fans alike
Jun
12
While it’s good that Petty Enterprises has found the partnership it needs to help it return to top form, it’s sad that the team needed that
kind of boost to remain competitive in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
The Pettys are the winningest organization in NASCAR history. Richard Petty remains one of the most familiar figures in the sport, a man
revered even by those he competed against and referred to admiringly by the men working in his shop. He’s a true icon, a man whose feather-brimmed hat has become synonymous with NASCAR in the eyes of a legion of fans.
If there was voting for most popular NASCAR person, Petty would probably win it year after year. So it was emotional for his fans, as well
as for him, to first announce that his team was leaving Level Cross, N.C., to land closer to the racing hub by relocating in Mooresville, N.C. It was difficult to listen to him discuss taking on a partner and allowing the Petty team to have a non-Petty chief executive officer for the first time in its history.
One can only imagine how difficult these decisions have been for Richard Petty, Kyle Petty and the entire family and organization. Certainly, the Pettys remain the heart and soul of the team. Richard Petty insists it will appear no different from the outside, that fans won’t notice a change.
And that’s a good thing, for both NASCAR and the Petty admirers. It’s just too bad that the sport has grown so large, so competitive and so expensive that there is little room for the family-run team anymore. Only the Wood Brothers remain to carry that banner on a full-time basis.
And while that’s understandable in the business world, it’s also sad to the hard-core and long-time NASCAR fans to witness.
kind of boost to remain competitive in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
The Pettys are the winningest organization in NASCAR history. Richard Petty remains one of the most familiar figures in the sport, a man
revered even by those he competed against and referred to admiringly by the men working in his shop. He’s a true icon, a man whose feather-brimmed hat has become synonymous with NASCAR in the eyes of a legion of fans.
If there was voting for most popular NASCAR person, Petty would probably win it year after year. So it was emotional for his fans, as well
as for him, to first announce that his team was leaving Level Cross, N.C., to land closer to the racing hub by relocating in Mooresville, N.C. It was difficult to listen to him discuss taking on a partner and allowing the Petty team to have a non-Petty chief executive officer for the first time in its history.
One can only imagine how difficult these decisions have been for Richard Petty, Kyle Petty and the entire family and organization. Certainly, the Pettys remain the heart and soul of the team. Richard Petty insists it will appear no different from the outside, that fans won’t notice a change.
And that’s a good thing, for both NASCAR and the Petty admirers. It’s just too bad that the sport has grown so large, so competitive and so expensive that there is little room for the family-run team anymore. Only the Wood Brothers remain to carry that banner on a full-time basis.
And while that’s understandable in the business world, it’s also sad to the hard-core and long-time NASCAR fans to witness.
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Comments
1 response to "New partnership invokes emotions for Pettys, fans alike"
randy hayes said:
Jun 17, 2008 at 3:20 AMthe focus on that team has to long been on "The King".it's needs to be on winning.however to win you need money.to get the money you need to win.Richard last won 20-25 yrs. ago.the team last won in 98-99.see a problem here?
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