Busch to RPM...???

Sirius XM NASCAR Radio's Sirius Speedway with Dave Moody has learned that in an effort to retain sponsor Best Buy, Richard Petty Motorsports has proposed replacing AJ Allmendinger as driver of the legendary #43 Ford with Busch. RPM struggled to re-sign Best Buy a year ago, negotiating until early January before inking a one-year contract. The electronics retailer served as major sponsor of the #43 team in 26 events this season.
Richard Petty Motorsports Chief Operating Officer Robbie Loomis confirmed today that discussions have been held regarding Busch, saying, "Best Buy has been a great partner for a long time, and AJ Allmendinger has done a fantastic job for us. He's coming off his best season yet, but I can tell you there is a lot of interest on our part in having Kurt Busch in the fold. It makes sense to have Kurt with our team, if we can make it work.
"Our main focus is to continue building on what we finished the season with last year," said Loomis. "But right now, I feel like I'm running down two different sets of train tracks. From a personal standpoint, nothing has excited me more than when I heard Kurt had become available. I'm excited about the opportunity to add a driver like Kurt Busch to Richard Petty Motorsports. I would mortgage my house to make Kurt a part of this team. We value what he has done on the race track. He has won a (Sprint Cup) championship and worked for a first-class operation like Penske Racing. Guys like that don't come along every day."
Allmendinger finished 15th in 2011 Sprint Cup Series championship points, with one Top-5 and 10 Top-10 finishes. His best finish was a fifth in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in late May. Busch won a pair of races this season at Infineon and Dover en route to 11th in points, tallying eight Top-5 and 16 Top-10 finishes. He parted company with Penske Racing earlier this month, in the aftermath of a much-publicized verbal confrontation with ESPN pit reporter Dr. Jerry Punch during the 2011 season finale at Homestead Miami Speedway (Sirius Speedway)

This makes perfect business sense for RPM. They have a 2 -car team with all the rsources, but with Ambrose still young in his Cup career, having Busch would be a huge win for RPM. It would be a big break for Kurt too. This deal will likley hinge on Best Buy.

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Permalink Reply by Wheaton56 on December 13, 2011 at 6:03pm

Man, AJ has got to be pissed,. Bummer for him

Permalink Reply by Vlad Rogers on December 13, 2011 at 6:32pm

Its not a done deal, but Id be pretty upset if I knew my hard work in 2011 wasnt appreciated.  Hes had some pretty bad luck over the years... This happened in IRL too/

Permalink Reply by NIKAL on December 13, 2011 at 6:48pm

Heck yeah if I was AJ I would feel unappreciated. Like I mentioned Richard Petty and Robbie Loomis have short term memories. I guess they dont remember AJ driving for free when he first came to their team. The team had little to no sponsorship and AJ just wanted another chance after Red Bull. By the end of the season they were very pleased with AJ and wanted him back for 2011. With the #19 going away they were able to move the Best Buy sponsorship to the #43.

Permalink Reply by chase on December 13, 2011 at 7:12pm

It sucks for AJ, but Kurt Busch is a much better driver. Shit happens and people do stupid things. You are biased for some reason. I would put Kurt Busch in this car any day of the week if Best Buy signed off on it. He WILL win races in the 43. AJ will NOT. Sorry to say. He has had 5? years. I agree with Robby Loomis. The guy has a championship and has respect and has done well for Petty. Who remembers how bad they were for years?? They didn't win a race until he showed up. Check your stats.

Permalink Reply by Brett Crawford on December 13, 2011 at 7:35pm

If AJ gets booted from RPM, he's the best available driver for the #22.  Working with Penske would be a good fit for him, and may even lead to open wheel races again he they wanted to.

Permalink Reply by TOG on December 13, 2011 at 7:39pm

me thinks whoever gets the #22 , it will be a 1yr contract . I still believe that Roger wants to see how Sam Hornish progresses in NW in 2012 & then bumping him up to the #22 in 2013.

Permalink Reply by NIKAL on December 13, 2011 at 7:50pm

I agree.

Permalink Reply by NIKAL on December 13, 2011 at 7:49pm

Not biased. I just dont think Kurt has shown respect since he showed up in NASCAR. If you look his attitude goes back to when he was with Roush. Also being from the West Coast and racing in the Vegas area you meet people who have known the boys and they say they were raised this way. Their dad supposedly has the same attitude.Now can Kurt race? Sure, but just being a driver is only part of the deal. You need to be able to deal with people and sponsors. Kurt has struggled with this part.

Since Loomis returned to Petty in 2006 Petty has 3 wins. 2 with Kasey Kaine in 2009 (Kasey was acquired through the Gillett merger) and 1 with Marcos Ambrose in 2011. I dont know how much of those wins can be credited to Robbie Loomis? Maybe the Marcos win as he was involved in getting Marcos to drive for them.

Permalink Reply by speedy7 on December 13, 2011 at 7:59pm

Still think you don't like Kurt, but facts are facts- he beats A.J. hands down anyway you look at it. Half way good season and Petty will be a chaser....

Permalink Reply by mj on December 13, 2011 at 9:08pm
I just can't see Richard Petty putting up with all of Kurt's crap , I mean Richard has all been a clean cut family type guy . The language out of Kurt's mouth could make a marine blush 
Permalink Reply by Bigzoom on December 14, 2011 at 9:12am
If RPM can land Kurt it will happen. I think we all agree Kurt is a major jerk to deal with, but so is Harvick & several other drivers. Drivers with Kurt's resume are in high demand to land (or keep) sponsorship. I doubt Jack Roush cares if Kurt drives for RPM. It helps Ford & he doesn't have to fool with Kurt. I'm sure Robbie & Richard will have a few added requirements to his contract. Finch had all the cards until RPM showed up. Kurt has options now.
Permalink Reply by kurt kern on December 14, 2011 at 9:42am

Yep......RPM has few cards......and obviously Penske liked the cards in his hand so he tossed Kurt Busch.    Finch comes up short since his hand is smaller (less cards).

 

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