Written by:
SPEED Staff
SPEEDtv.com
10/28/2008
Daytona Beach, Fla.
Petty is trying out Orbit's BMW Riley prototype at Daytona this week. (LAT photo)
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NASCAR veteran Kyle Petty made an appearance on Tuesday during the second day of the three-day October Test Days session in preparation for the 47th anniversary of the Rolex 24 At Daytona on Jan. 24-25.
Petty was behind the wheel of the No. 45 Orbit Racing BMW Riley Daytona Prototype as he prepares for his seventh career start in the Rolex 24 and his first since 2006. But Petty says that the 2009 Rolex 24 could be the first of many sports car events next year with Orbit Racing as he and Orbit Racing owner Rodger Hawley are working on a potential deal for the entire Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series season.
“We’re trying to put something together to run not only the 24 Hours but all year long,” Petty said. “Obviously I’m in a place with the Cup stuff where I don’t really have a ride right now. I have always said this is where I wanted to be. From the time I came here for the first time, I said to run the Grand American division would be the next step up. I don’t want to go back to Nationwide and I don’t want to go run Trucks. That’s a step down from the Cup Series. This is a step over. I don’t look at this as a step down. This is a step to the top of road racing. It’s been a lot of fun out there so far. I forget where the infield goes sometimes.”
Petty has made six previous starts in the Rolex 24 including three with Orbit Racing between 2001 – 03. He has three top-15 finishes overall including a sixth-place finish in 2003 and a seventh in 2001.
He remembers fondly his 2004 Rolex 24 start in which he shared driving duties with the late actor Paul Newman, who recently passed away.
The car, which was driven by Petty, Newman, Gunnar Jeanette and Michael Brockman, finished 48th overall and completed only 185 laps. The memories of that start are special to Petty because he got to drive with Newman.
“I had the privilege of driving with Paul one of the last times he came down here and drove,” Petty said. “Obviously it was for the Hole In The Wall Gang camps and Victory Junction and Boggy Creek over here in Eustis. It was for his group of camps. That was the main reason I did it.
“You look at it and we came down here and probably didn’t have a shot at winning it. Now here I stand today, it’s one of my most cherished memories to come down here. It rained the whole time and we threw windshield wipers off the thing but it was fun no matter what.”
“That’s what’s so great about the 24-hour race. You bring people from all over the world, from all walks of life, from all forms of motorsports, from all forms of entertainment that want to be a part of it. That’s the way the 24-hour race was back when I was growing up and that’s what it’s becoming again.”
The October Test Days session features more than 20 sports cars testing for the Rolex 24. This is the first of three off-season tests for the Rolex Series at Daytona. Teams will test with 2009 tires Nov. 11-12. A star-studded lineup is expected for the Jan. 2-4 session, the last major session prior to the 2009 season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona.
