Archive for the ‘Kyle Petty’ Category

When Boston Vultures Ventures bought their stake in Petty Enterprises, it was the beginning of the end. What a sham, for the Petty’s and the fans.

There won’t be a Petty in the Daytona 500 for the first time in more than 40 years.

Kyle Petty, the son of seven-time Daytona 500 winner Richard Petty, knew the day would come when NASCAR’s first family wouldn’t be at stock car racing’s Super Bowl. But he’s not happy about it.

Petty, who dropped by the infield Saturday to do some TV work and promote a celebrity golf event he’ll host later this year in Phoenix, will be home in North Carolina on Sunday.

“I won’t even watch it on TV, that’s what it’s like,” said Petty, who’s run the 500 more than 25 times. “It’s crap is what it’s like.”

Petty found himself out of a job when Petty Enterprises merged with Gillett Evernham Motorsports and was rebranded Richard Petty Motorsports. The move kept the Petty name in the business, but Kyle Petty said he feels no loyalty for the new team.

I don’t blame him. Not one bit.

Richard Petty never would have negotiated further than the second sentence if there was any doubt that the Petty name would be part of the newly formed organization with Gillett Evernham Motorsports.

Richard Petty recognized that times were changing and that NASCAR teams just couldn’t be run the way they once were. He felt the need to merge with another organization, to find a way to return his Petty group to prominence.

But he had one key restriction.

Of course, I think it would have been better if Kyle Petty was also part of the organization, but it is what it is. I am still a Kyle Petty fan, more so than just a Petty fan.

We’re heard rumors that Kyle Petty was on the outs with the new investors. From the sound of it, the rumors are all true.

If you want to know what’s going down at Petty Enterprises these days, don’t ask Kyle Petty.

So says Kyle Petty, son of Richard and grandson of Lee, who founded the race organization in Level Cross, N.C., in 1949. Richard Petty is part owner of Petty Enterprises, which currently is in merger discussions with Gillett Evernham Motorsports. Petty Enterprises entered into a partnership agreement with outside investment firm Boston Ventures this past May.

…

“It’s got nothing to do with me because it’s my father’s company. Me talking about it is
about like anybody else talking about it from the outside looking in.”

I know it’s all business, but it’s a shame when a family as legendary as the Petty’s end up losing their family’s legacy because a bunch of monkeys in suits wanted a piece of a financial pie. They were never in it for the sport, and that’s what sucks.

Yahoo! Sports has an article up about the racers trying to get into, or stay, in the top 35 owners points. When Kyle Petty went of fon Denny Hamlin last week, I didn’t realize why he was so angry. I guess I know now.

When Kyle Petty blew his top Sunday at Dover, berating Denny Hamlin and reaching into his car to slap down the youngster’s helmet shield, some wondered why the veteran was so angry.

It’s true Hamlin hit Petty from behind and knocked him into the wall, but what does Petty have riding on in these late-season races that brought on a case of road rage?

He isn’t part of NASCAR’s Chase for the Nextel Cup championship, and he hasn’t been close to a victory since the last of his eight career wins in 1995 at Dover.

Even so, the longtime stock car competitor has a lot riding on every lap the rest of the way, just like Hamlin, one of the 12 drivers in the Chase.

Head on over to Yahoo! Sports to read the rest. It’s a good piece.