After surviving a tough race at Indianapolis, Armstrong comes to Iowa Speedway excited to return to his short track background. After studying their notebook and race film from May, the No. 43 WinField team has worked hard developing a setup to better fit Armstrong's hard charging driving style. The team hopes to use the season's second visit to Iowa as a platform to rebuild their short track performance to last season's strength level. Currently, Armstrong sits 12th in the XFINITY Series Championship Point Standings, just 16 points outside of 11th place.
Armstrong has nine prior starts at Iowa Speedway between the XFINITY Series, Camping World Truck Series and ARCA Racing Series. In his three XFINITY Series starts at the .875-mile track, he has an average finish of 21st and earned his best finish of fourth in the ARCA Series in 2010.
Armstrong Weekend Chatter
"I'm not sure if we should call Iowa a short track or a speedway. It acts like both. We've struggled a bit on these shorter tracks this year. Short track racing was a strong point for us last year, and we want to get back to that. This place is tough. You have to handle really well through the center. We have to get better at carrying speed into the corner. That's what we've struggled the most with on short tracks this year. We're working hard on the setup to make sure we have the front and rear grip we need to charge the corner. I really like Iowa. I've have good races there in the past."
About Richard Petty Motorsports
A performance and marketing driven company, Richard Petty Motorsports, co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty and successful business entrepreneur Andrew Murstein, is one of the most recognized brands in all of motorsports. With a history of over 200 wins and business partnerships with national and global leaders, today the race operation fields two teams in competition in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Aric Almirola pilots the famous No. 43 Ford Fusion with primary partners Smithfield Foods, U.S. Air Force, STP and Fresh From Florida, and Sam Hornish Jr. drives the No. 9 machine with primary partners Medallion Bank and Twisted Tea. In addition, Dakoda Armstrong wheels the No. 43 WinField Ford Mustang full-time in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. The team is headquartered in Mooresville, N.C.