Did You Notice? … Legacy Motor Club has shrunk the involvement of Richard Petty within its race team? Since 47-year-old Jimmie Johnson bought in at the end of last season, Petty’s been more of a brand ambassador than someone making major decisions within the organization.
How Petty feels about it seems more nuanced than an AP article this past weekend suggesting The King was hurt over losing power within the race team. He openly participated in decisions that led to additional ownership involvement and is open about how his team has floundered competition-wise: a Petty-owned car has qualified for the postseason only once, in 2014 with Aric Almirola.
“Yes” was the answer when reporters asked if the changes bothered him but Petty also admitted that, at 85 years old, Johnson was the future.
“As I’ve progressed and time progresses and things change for the world, it was probably time for a change,” Petty said. “Jimmie is looking not just at this year; he is trying to lay a foundation for the next four or five years.
“He is still young enough he is going to be around for a long, long time.”
It’s a tough realization Father Time comes for all of us. Petty’s contemporaries are aging out of the sport: Bobby Allison and Cale Yarborough, also in their 80s, haven’t owned NASCAR Cup Series teams for over two decades. While Petty may be the most recognizable face in the sport, even he realizes he won’t be around forever.
The sport’s winningest driver is simply the latest casualty of a generational transition in ownership. It was 51-year-old Hendrick Motorsports Vice Chairman Jeff Gordon, not 73-year-old Rick Hendrick, front and center with the media at Daytona International Speedway. 39-year-old Brad Keselowski, even as a full-time driver/owner, is now the face at RFK Racing, not 80-year-old Jack Roush.
It’s the same type of shift we’ve seen on the Cup grid the past few seasons, where 20- and early 30-something talent has suddenly gained the upper hand over their contemporaries.
Just check out the shift in ownership ages on the Cup grid …
- Live Fast Motorsports: B.J. McLeod, 39
- RFK Racing: Brad Keselowski, 39 (Jack Roush, 80)
- Trackhouse Racing: Justin Marks, 41
- Wood Brothers Racing: Jon Wood, 41 (assumed he takes over after Eddie and Len)
- 23XI Racing: Denny Hamlin, 42 (Michael Jordan, 60)
- Legacy Motor Club: Jimmie Johnson, 47 (Maury Gallagher, 71 & Richard Petty, 85)
- Spire…
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