Richard Petty bothered by downsizing of role at team since Jimmie Johnson’s arrival Daytona Xfinity starting lineup: Austin Hill wins pole Sunday Daytona 500: Start time, TV info, weather NASCAR Saturday schedule at Daytona Daytona Truck race results, driver points

Richard Petty admits he was annoyed by the reduction in his role on the Cup team that bore his name before Jimmie Johnson became a minority owner last year.

Petty GMS Racing has been renamed Legacy Motor Club for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, and The King has no stake in the organization that includes the No. 43 he made famous.

The seven-time Cup champion remains in his role as “chief ambassador” to the Legacy Motor Club, but Petty, 85, explained (during a speech Saturday morning at Daytona International Speedway) that Johnson and his management team are in charge of all major decisions.

“Yes, it is,” Petty replied with a laugh when asked if it bothered him. “Because I’ve been doing things my own way, which hasn’t been too good lately, but things change in the world as time goes by. Then it’s probably time for a change.

“Jimmy isn’t necessarily looking at what’s going to happen this year, but he’s trying to lay the groundwork for four or five years when he’s still young enough to last for a long, long time.”

When it comes to “sponsorships and performances and all that stuff, Jimmy’s crowd kind of controls it,” Petty said. “I guess that’s something I’ve never had to put up with. I’m still doing my thing. But then I do a lot for our new team.”

In an interview on Saturday afternoon Along with Dan Gelston of the Associated Press, Johnson said he was “disappointed to hear and read in the press that his feelings were hurt because he didn’t express them to me, to begin with. But honestly, there are a lot of moving parts to it. Even before I arrived, business decisions were being made between (head team owner) Mr. (Morey) Gallagher and the Petty family. These are details that I simply cannot talk about.

“But a lot of what Richard is talking about is based on business decisions that he and his family have made that are not related to my involvement.”

The Petty name has been part of NASCAR’s premier series almost from its inception in 1949 until this year. Petty Enterprises was founded by Richard’s father, Lee, and in recent years has evolved into Richard Petty Motorsports and then Petty GMS.

Petty said his new role “was strange to me” in part because he and Johnson agree with the team’s direction “about 50% of the time” but “The King” is still adjusting to the fact that he no longer has the final say. .

“Most of the time I host most of the show,” Petty said. “Jimmy brought all his people and his way of running things (and) my way of running things is probably a little different, okay?”

Johnson, 47, returned to NASCAR as a part-time driver and team owner after racing in the NTT IndyCar Series for the past two seasons.

After secure a place through qualification On Wednesday, his start in Sunday’s Daytona 500 will be Johnson’s first race in NASCAR since the 2020 Cup season finale in Phoenix. He’s planning more Cup starts this season (but apart from Daytona, only a street race in Chicago has been confirmed).

“I think Jimmy is really looking to the future,” Petty said. “Basically, he will be running the show in four to five years. Probably in four or five years he will become the main owner of our enterprise. I know they see things in a completely different way.

“Jimmy is very observant. Basically, Jimmy controls everything. You make postcards and stuff, he should approve of that. He approves of everything. He’s pretty busy right now.”

Legacy Motor Club offers Chevrolet vehicles for year-round driving. Eric Jones and newbie Noah Gragson. Petty said he understands why the team rebranded.

“It was one of the operations when Jimmy came in, it was hard being ‘Petty Johnson GMS,'” Petty said. “Once again Jimmy thinks about this band further and came up with a new name.

“So we got him with seven championships, me with seven championships, (Hall of Famer) Dale Inman with eight championships. So quite a legendary top-down or top-down operation. That’s why they wanted a new team. They wanted to do something a little different, and so they came up with (name).”

Johnson has been busy with media commitments since Saturday’s Daytona 500 Saturday practice and said he has yet to speak to “The King”. But Johnson planned to discuss Petty’s displeasure in a future conversation between two of the three seven-time champions in NASCAR history (along with the late Dale Earnhardt).

“He has always been so kind and wonderful to me,” Johnson said. “He’s the last person I punched before I rolled off the pit lane and won my seventh championship.”

Petty and Johnson are among nine former NASCAR champions and Daytona 500 winners who will be grand marshals for Sunday’s race.

Locked in!! pic.twitter.com/SXBKPMurST

— Jimmie Johnson (@JimmieJohnson) February 16, 2023

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida – Austin Hillwho is looking to win the season-opening Xfinity Series race at Daytona International Speedway for the second year in a row, will start from pole position in Saturday’s race (5:00 pm ET on FS1).

Hill took pole at 182.563 mph. He will be joined in the front row Parker Kligermanwhich participates in the full Xfinity series for the first time since 2013. Kligerman qualified at 182.441 mph.

MORE: Daytona Xfinity Starting Lineup

Cole Custerwho returned to the series full-time after the last three seasons in the Cup, starts third after a 182.319 mph lap. Sheldon Creed (182.216 mph) qualified fourth. Justin Algayer (182.208 mph) completed the top five.

Driver’s Cup Justin Hailey starts 19th after the lap at 180.661 mph.

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida. The seven-time Cup champion is back. The two-time champion has changed teams. And the former champion makes his last Daytona 500 start on Sunday.

The 75th Anniversary NASCAR season is off to a great start.

Nine former and current drivers who have won at least one Daytona 500 and cup championship will command the start of the Daytona 500. Among them will be Jimmie Johnson, who is returning to the series after spending the last two years in IndyCar. Row. Also among them will be Kevin Harvickwhich starts its last cup season.

Two-time Cup champion Kyle Bush looking for his first Daytona 500. He will do so with Richard Childress Racing after spending the last 15 seasons with Joe Gibbs Racing.

Hendrick Motorsports will be looking for Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson, William Byron and pole sitter Alex Bowman win the organization’s first Daytona 500 win since Dale Earnhardt Jr.Russian victory in 2014.

Denny Hamlin aiming for his fourth Daytona 500 win, which would tie him with Cale Yarborough for second place on the all-time Daytona 500 win list. Richard Petty has won this race a record seven times.

Sunday Daytona 500 Details

(All time Eastern)

START OFF: Grand Marshals Richard Petty, Bobby Ellison, Bill Elliott, Dale Jarrett, Jeff Gordon, Jimmy Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Bush And Joey Logano will give the command to start the engines at 14:58 … The green flag should be raised at 15:14.

PRERACE: Cup Garage opens at 8:00… Dierks Bentley concert starts at 1:30 pm… Drivers meet at 1:40 pm… Drivers introduction at 2:15 pm… Chaplain Farzad Noorian incantation at 2:46 pm… National anthem performed by Breland at 2:40 pm 47

DISTANCE: The race is 200 laps (500 miles) on a 2.5 mile Super Speedway.

STAGES: Stage 1 ends on lap 65. Stage 2 ends on lap 130.

TV/RADIO: FOX will broadcast the race at 14:30. Pre-race coverage starts at 13:00…Motor Racing Network radio starts at 13:30 and will also air on MRN.com; SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will broadcast MRN.

FLOW: FOX Sports

FORECAST: Weather Metro – Partly cloudy with a maximum of 74 degrees and a 15% chance of rain at the start of the race

STARTING LINE-UP: Daytona 500 starting lineup

BEHIND: Kyle Busch (spare car).

LAST YEAR: Austin Sindrik held off the field on the final lap to take his first Daytona 500 win and first career series win. Bubba Wallace took second place. Chase Briscoe took third place.

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