Richard Petty Motorsports makes Brian Scott hire official
Brian Scott is indeed teaming with Aric Almirola at Richard Petty Motorsports in 2016.
The team introduced Scott as its new driver on Friday. Scott replaces Sam Hornish Jr., who drove the No. 9 car in 2015. Hornish replaced Marcos Ambrose, who left the Sprint Cup Series to return to his native Australia after the 2014 season.
“I am thrilled to go Sprint Cup Series racing full time next year and to do it with such an iconic team,” said Scott. “When you think NASCAR racing, you think Petty. I’m glad to now be a part of that legacy. I had a lot of fun competing in the XFINITY Series for the last seven years, and I’m excited to take the next step. I ran some races in the Sprint Cup Series the last few years and learned a lot. I feel like we are in a good position to compete for the Rookie of the Year next year and continue the consistency that RPM built over the last few years.”
The team said sponsorship would be announced at a later date and there have been rumors the team could also be changing numbers on the car.
Scott is being hired likely largely because he brings sponsorship. Sports Business Journal said Scott could be sponsored by grocery store Albertson’s, who is associated with Scott’s family. Scott has been sponsored by Shore Lodge, his father’s Idaho resort, during his Xfinity Series career.
He has 20 top-five finishes and 77 top 10s in 208 career Xfinity Series starts. He’ll be eligible to run for the Sprint Cup Series Rookie of the Year in 2016 vs. Chris Buescher and Ryan Blaney. Buescher, the 2015 Xfinity Series champion, will drive the No. 34 for Front Row Motorsports and Blaney will drive the No. 21 for the Wood Brothers. All three Rookie of the Year candidates will be in Fords.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
