Almost 40 years ago an additive company joined forces with Richard Petty and for decades the Petty blue cars with day glo red STP decals were icons of the race track.
After a successful association between Andy Granatelli, who won the 1969 Indy 500 with Mario Andretti behind the wheel, the predecessor company turned south to stock car racing and joined Petty for ride which included 200 victories, 100 more than any other association.
"When you look at me, you look at history,” said Petty in Kansas City on Friday.
The little company got swallowed up in the merger mania of following decades which saw the parent company not so interested in racing.
As Petty puts it “they're no longer involved with salad dressing people".
STP is the race sponsor this weekend in Kansas and also for the Nationwide Race in Joliet.
Additionally, AJ Allmendinger’s Ford Fusion is liveried in a style reminiscent of Petty’s 1972 Dodge.
“Since our initial sponsorship with Richard Petty almost 40 years ago, we’ve understood the power of racing and the ability to connect with our consumers through the sport,” said Dave Lundstedt, CEO of Armored AutoGroup Inc, the parent company of STP. “We are excited to be continuing that relationship with the fans and adding another chapter to our storied racing history with a diverse stable of sponsorships.”
“Since `72, I’ve been an STP man, so I’m thrilled to see one of the RPM cars out on the track with the STP paint scheme,” said Richard Petty, team owner of Richard Petty Motorsports and legendary driver of the No. 43 STP car. “It’s exciting to see such an iconic brand build upon its heritage in the sport at this level.”
Toronto’s Bill Brack used to race with STP sponsorship in the Formula Atlantic Series after he ran a few Grands Prix in Formula One for teams BRM and Lotus in the late 1960s.
The Armored Auto Group has an ambitious startup plan to be involved in auto racing number of ways including:
·Multi-year title sponsorship of the Nationwide and Cup races at Chicagoland Speedway and Kansas Speedway, respectively. This year, the STP 300 Nationwide Series race will take place on June 4 and the STP 400 Cup race will run on June 5.
·The STP-branded No. 43 car will make its return to the track driven by Richard Petty Motorsports driver, AJ Allmendinger, during the STP 400. The No. 43 STP Ford Fusion will be a modern replica of the 1972 paint scheme featuring the original Petty Blue and STP Day-Glo Red.
·Primary sponsor of two-time NHRA Full Throttle Nitro Funny Car Champion Tony Pedregon for three races (Las Vegas, Houston and Infineon) and an associate sponsorship for the balance of the season.
·Multi-year track sponsorships with a number of ISC properties including Daytona, Talladega, Richmond, Darlington, Michigan, Chicagoland and Kansas.
·Multi-year track sponsorship of Infineon Raceway and title sponsor of Wednesday Night Drags and Bracket Drags.
·Continued sponsorship of Tony Stewart Racing and four-time World of Outlaws Champion Donny Schatz and the World of Outlaws Series.
 |
| Foreground AJ Allmendinger with current Ford Fusion, background Richard Petty with 1972 Dodge. (Photo: CIA Photo) |
After a successful association between Andy Granatelli, who won the 1969 Indy 500 with Mario Andretti behind the wheel, the predecessor company turned south to stock car racing and joined Petty for ride which included 200 victories, 100 more than any other association.
"When you look at me, you look at history,” said Petty in Kansas City on Friday.
The little company got swallowed up in the merger mania of following decades which saw the parent company not so interested in racing.
As Petty puts it “they're no longer involved with salad dressing people".
STP is the race sponsor this weekend in Kansas and also for the Nationwide Race in Joliet.
Additionally, AJ Allmendinger’s Ford Fusion is liveried in a style reminiscent of Petty’s 1972 Dodge.
“Since our initial sponsorship with Richard Petty almost 40 years ago, we’ve understood the power of racing and the ability to connect with our consumers through the sport,” said Dave Lundstedt, CEO of Armored AutoGroup Inc, the parent company of STP. “We are excited to be continuing that relationship with the fans and adding another chapter to our storied racing history with a diverse stable of sponsorships.”
“Since `72, I’ve been an STP man, so I’m thrilled to see one of the RPM cars out on the track with the STP paint scheme,” said Richard Petty, team owner of Richard Petty Motorsports and legendary driver of the No. 43 STP car. “It’s exciting to see such an iconic brand build upon its heritage in the sport at this level.”
 |
| Canadian Bill Brack raced Atlantics with the support of STP. |
Toronto’s Bill Brack used to race with STP sponsorship in the Formula Atlantic Series after he ran a few Grands Prix in Formula One for teams BRM and Lotus in the late 1960s.
The Armored Auto Group has an ambitious startup plan to be involved in auto racing number of ways including:
·Multi-year title sponsorship of the Nationwide and Cup races at Chicagoland Speedway and Kansas Speedway, respectively. This year, the STP 300 Nationwide Series race will take place on June 4 and the STP 400 Cup race will run on June 5.
·The STP-branded No. 43 car will make its return to the track driven by Richard Petty Motorsports driver, AJ Allmendinger, during the STP 400. The No. 43 STP Ford Fusion will be a modern replica of the 1972 paint scheme featuring the original Petty Blue and STP Day-Glo Red.
·Primary sponsor of two-time NHRA Full Throttle Nitro Funny Car Champion Tony Pedregon for three races (Las Vegas, Houston and Infineon) and an associate sponsorship for the balance of the season.
·Multi-year track sponsorships with a number of ISC properties including Daytona, Talladega, Richmond, Darlington, Michigan, Chicagoland and Kansas.
·Multi-year track sponsorship of Infineon Raceway and title sponsor of Wednesday Night Drags and Bracket Drags.
·Continued sponsorship of Tony Stewart Racing and four-time World of Outlaws Champion Donny Schatz and the World of Outlaws Series.