Looks like David Ragan is headed for the 43. Wonder if this was more of a Pennzoil decision, or a Jack Roush decision to make sure Ragan didn't leave the Ford camp. At some point he is going to have some hard choices to make- he has Biffle, Edwards, Kenseth, Stenhouse, and Bayne in the same house and not nearly enough cars.
Updated: December 21, 2011, 11:08 AM
ETSource: AJ Allmendinger to drive No. 22
By David Newton
ESPN.com
Archive CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- AJ Allmendinger will be named the driver of the No. 22 Sprint Cup car at Penske Racing on Wednesday, a source close to the situation told ESPN.com.
Allmendinger finished 15th in points this past season driving the No. 43 Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports. He became available after RPM lost primary sponsor Best Buy to Roush Fenway Racing.
Allmendinger will replace 2004 Cup champion Kurt Busch, who reached a "mutual'' agreement to leave Penske Racing after a 2011 season in which he had several profanity-laced run-ins with the media and his team.
He was picked over David Ragan, who interviewed with the Dodge team and sponsor Shell Pennzoil shortly after Busch was released.
Ragan could be a candidate for the 43. He also could drive for Phoenix Racing, with which he had a tentative agreement before pursuing the 22.
In 152 career starts, Allmendinger has no wins and four top-five finishes. He is coming off his best season, with 10 of his career 26 top-10 finishes.
RPM released a statement Tuesday saying it plans to remain a two-car team in 2012.
"Although it is very disappointing that Best Buy is changing directions at this late date, we wish all of our friends there the best in their future endeavors," RPM co-owner Richard Petty said in a statement.
"Our plan has always been to run a two-car team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2012 and we are continuing down that path. We have several partners that remain committed to the No. 43 team. We will move forward and explore all of our options in regard to the No. 43 program in the coming weeks."
From Lee Spencer for FOX NewsUpdated Dec 21, 2011 11:25 AM ET
AJ Allmendinger has won the Penske Racing lottery.
Allmendinger, who turned 30 on Friday, has been selected to drive the organizations No. 22 Shell/AAA Dodge in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2012, FOXSports.com first reported.
He replaces Kurt Busch, who left Penske on Dec. 6 in a mutual parting. Allmendinger received his release from Richard Petty Motorsports on Tuesday after the organization was unable to retain Best Buy for 2012.
I have always admired Roger Penske and the way his teams compete and win in every series where they race," said Allmendinger in a press release. "It is a privilege for me to represent such iconic and respected brands as Shell and Pennzoil, AAA and Dodge. I am honored to join Penske Racing and I will do my very best to continue to build on the standard of excellence established across the organization.
On Tuesday, Best Buy announced a new partnership with Roush Fenway Racing for next season.
Allmendinger is coming off his most successful season in NASCAR after finishing 15th in the Cup points standings.
Although his stock-car career began with a shaky start, Allmendinger has persevered. He and Red Bull Racing made their Sprint Cup debut together in 2007 -- and qualified for only 17 races that first season. Comparatively, his Red Bull Racing teammate Brian Vickers made the show 23 times that same season.
The following year, NASCAR veteran Mike Skinner was brought on board to mentor the sophomore stock-car racer. Red Bull elected to bench Allmendinger for six races after he missed the first three. Ultimately, Allmendinger regained the seat but was replaced by Scott Speed for the final six races of the season.
Allmendinger cobbled together rides with Michael Waltrip Racing and Gillett Evernham Motorsports to finish out the 2008 season.
His audition in the No. 10 GEM Dodge proved valuable enough to retain a full-time gig for 2009, as GEM transformed into Richard Petty Motorsports for the 2010 season.
Allmendinger earned his first career pole in 2010 at Phoenix International Raceway. Despite the financial insecurity surrounding team owner George Gillett, Allmendinger maintained his composure and finished the year on a high note with a fifth-place showing at Homestead-Miami Speedway. His first full season competing in 36 races with the same team in Cup produced two top-fives, eight top-10s and a 19th-place finish in the point standings.
As RPM changed hands once again at the end of the 2010 season, Allmendinger and the No. 43 team were all that remained from the old regime. Throughout the year, he was never lower than 17th in the standings but missed the necessary spark to break through to the next level.
The addition of veteran crew chief Greg Erwin before the race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July provided that spark. Together, the pair vaulted four spots in the standings and missed a Chase berth by one position when the field was set Sept. 10 at Richmond.
Despite a challenging five seasons, Allmendinger has shown dramatic improvement each year, both in top-five and top-10 finishes, as well as where he finished in the points standings.
Like Penske, Allmendinger's racing roots come from open wheel. Allmendinger honed his skills on go-karts. He earned two Karting titles, a Barber Dodge championship and Champ Car Atlantic title before being named Champ Car Rookie of the Year in 2004.
When the Los Gatos, Calif., native was recruited by Gerry Forsythe after the first four races of the 2006 season, he went on a winning spree, picking up five races of the final nine.
As the year wound down, Allmendinger signed a NASCAR deal with Team Red Bull and tested the waters in the Truck series. In his second truck start, he finished fifth at Talladega Superspeedway.
Penske Racing announced Dec. 14 that Nationwide Series crew chief Todd Gordon was promoted as crew chief of the No. 22 Dodge. Gordon won six races and six poles with driver Brad Keselowski this season.
I'd forgotten AJ ran the 2011 season for RPM for free. That really showed true commitment to wanting to stay in the sport so for that, I hope he has a good run in the #22. Also a great break for Todd Gordon who seemed to really know his stuff in the Nationwide #22. Along with Jason Ratcliffe moving to the #20 Cup team, that makes two successful Nationwide crew chiefs getting their breaks in big time Cup racing.
As for Ragan to the #43, surely Jack would want Ragan in the Ford camp rather than the guy that left his organization in 2005 (Kurt) but I'd think it all depends on which driver can attract the better sponsor for RPM at this point given Jack stole Best Buy from them??
Rousch is calling the shots for EVERYTHING with a blue oval. I think that stinks. But, as they say, it is what it is. I never thought the day would come when I would have to pity Richard Petty. But he is being used up like kleenex in a sinus ward at the hospital.
I've heard some people say Best Buy actually came to Roush in which case I can't fault him much but we'll never know for sure what actually transpired I guess.
As for Ragan, I sorta feel like he more than had his shot after 5 seasons at Roush and didn't do much with it. I agree he's a nice guy but he just never performed at the level you need to when you're in one of the best rides in the garage. Same with Logano. However it is put up or shut up time for AJ now and if he can't get a win in the #22, his time is up too.
