Tune in for
all the action!

Greetings Race Fans!

This is the BIG Michigan race weekend for Marathon. And, the Petty's made a lot of significant announcements this week, which will make it even bigger for us! This weekend's MIS race will feature the only 2 brothers, Bobby and Terry Labonte, ever to win NASCAR Cup Championships, BOTH proudly displaying the Marathon colors on their cars and drivers' suits.  They'll be driving the #43 and #45 Marathon American Spirit Motor Oil Dodges for 400 miles at Michigan this Sunday, while Kyle is announcing from the TNT booth.  Last year, Bobby had a top-10 finish at MIS and we're excited to see our "Marathon Men" show us what they've got this weekend. He finished 11th last week in Pocono. Terry is guaranteed to be in the race as a "past champion".  Make sure to watch TNT this Sunday, June 15th, at 2:00pm.

And to top the debut of 2 Marathon Racing cars taking the track in our own backyard, the Pettys made some big announcements this week that certainly made for frosting on the cake!  Boston Ventures, a private equity firm, has made a significant investment in Petty Enterprises to become the majority owner.  This money will be used to implement improvement and growth programs throughout the organization. Several years ago, Richard Childress Racing partnered with a similar firm, and have seen significant improvements in their racing performance.  And contrary to the rumors, the Pettys signed Bobby Labonte to drive the #43 Petty Enterprises Dodge through the 2012 Sprint Cup season. He sees a bright future with the Pettys, and he put his name on the dotted line to prove it!  

In addition, Petty Enterprises have appointed a new, experienced CEO.  David Zucker will work side-by-side with Richard Petty, who will remain highly involved in the team's day-to-day activities.  David joins the team with a lengthy resume that includes CEO of Midway Games, COO of Playboy International and Executive Vice President of ESPN International.  

Quite a busy week, I would say!  The result will be that we should get a lot of attention this weekend on the various pre-race programs and during the race.

Petty Enterprises has an unmatched history of winning in any sport, and nobody wants to win more than Richard "The King" Petty.  Richard acknowledges that racing has changed a lot since his Dad started Petty Enterprises 60 years ago and they need to move forward to have a successful future.  Some of the changes that have been made at Petty Enterprises' have been extremely big, but Richard's prepared to do what it takes to win again.  That is their goal and they intend to reach it.  Once you've tasted it 200 times, you're not willing to let it go.  Let's wish them the best of good fortune.  

Let's go Racing!

Let's go racing!