[titans#1]

labonte is starting sixth at the track he's won at 6 times.i wouldnt be surprised if he races agresivly sunday since petty interprise needs it labonte needs it and his fans need it.do you guys think he can pull it off? I HOPE SO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GO LABONTE

[Mike24]

Labonte has been good at Atlanta, but with the 43, he really hasn't shined there. His strong Qualifying run may prove that he and Petty Enterprises are finally finding something that works.

[Phils20]

He ran very well there last year, until his engine blew! Look out for him on Sunday, His pit crew may not be up to the challenge if it comes down to that, but that man has not forgotten how to get around Atlanta!

Go Bobby!!

[Mike24]

Originally Posted by Phils20

He ran very well there last year, until his engine blew! Look out for him on Sunday, His pit crew may not be up to the challenge if it comes down to that, but that man has not forgotten how to get around Atlanta!

Go Bobby!!

Nope, I don't think it's a driver problem, Bobby knows how to get around Atlanta, he has won and finished in the top 5 almost every year with the 18. He just needs the right equipment, and Petty Enterprises may have found something for Bobby to work with.

[clutch]

Originally Posted by titans#1

labonte is starting sixth at the track he's won at 6 times.i wouldnt be surprised if he races agresivly sunday since petty interprise needs it labonte needs it and his fans need it.do you guys think he can pull it off? I HOPE SO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GO LABONTE

I certainly hope so TItans, he does well here for sure

[LSC9901]

Realistically most of the drivers in NASCAR today have the ability. A few don't belong there but I see the entire picture as the problem. The entire picture being the team, equipment and driver. If that doesn't all gel then no single part of the equation will be able to hold up the other failing parts.

[Jeffrey4318]

I'm probably one of the biggest Bobby fans. I live here in Corpus so it is pretty awesome to have a home town driver to root for. Too bad we can't get a track in Corpus. I was sad to see him leave the 18, but it was for the better I think. Plus I'm also a huge Yeley fan so it was cool to see him get the ride. Back to point though I think he can win in the 43. I do think it will be at Atlanta when he does. I don't think he can win consistently in the 43 though. That is what makes me sad. PE needs to change manufactures. They wont be able to get anywhere behind Chip, Ray, and Roger. If I was PE I would jump ship to Toyota while they are still young and starting out. Toyota would give them top equipement and top engines. They could be Toyota's flagship team. Since they would have the best chance to make the races. Bobby's expierence could help Toyota make stides in winning. Both PE and Toyota would be able to grow together.

To me they are at a dead end with Dodge. They aren't making a new strides in their engine program running second rate Everhamn engines. Their support falls behind Ray, Rodger, and Chip. To me they wont build anything where they are at. It is sad because both PE and Bobby's careers are moving foward.

[Phils20]

Originally Posted by Jeffrey4318

I'm probably one of the biggest Bobby fans. I live here in Corpus so it is pretty awesome to have a home town driver to root for. Too bad we can't get a track in Corpus. I was sad to see him leave the 18, but it was for the better I think. Plus I'm also a huge Yeley fan so it was cool to see him get the ride. Back to point though I think he can win in the 43. I do think it will be at Atlanta when he does. I don't think he can win consistently in the 43 though. That is what makes me sad. PE needs to change manufactures. They wont be able to get anywhere behind Chip, Ray, and Roger. If I was PE I would jump ship to Toyota while they are still young and starting out. Toyota would give them top equipement and top engines. They could be Toyota's flagship team. Since they would have the best chance to make the races. Bobby's expierence could help Toyota make stides in winning. Both PE and Toyota would be able to grow together.

To me they are at a dead end with Dodge. They aren't making a new strides in their engine program running second rate Everhamn engines. Their support falls behind Ray, Rodger, and Chip. To me they wont build anything where they are at. It is sad because both PE and Bobby's careers are moving foward.

I really hope it isn't that bad! They will have to earn that top status. It doesn't seem that Toyota's best support is doing a lot with the teams they have now!! If this year isn't improved over last, you will be proven correct!

Let's hope they can finish in the top 15 and continue on the path forward!

[clutch]

Originally Posted by Jeffrey4318

To me they are at a dead end with Dodge. They aren't making a new strides in their engine program running second rate Everhamn engines. Their support falls behind Ray, Rodger, and Chip. To me they wont build anything where they are at. It is sad because both PE and Bobby's careers are moving foward.

6 of the top 10 qualifiers at Atlanta were powered by Dodge.....and 8 of the top 12

the problems that Dodge seemed to have in my mind was more areodynamics than Horsepower, but that seems to have been fixed

[Bob Tanner]

Originally Posted by Jeffrey4318

I'm probably one of the biggest Bobby fans. I live here in Corpus so it is pretty awesome to have a home town driver to root for. Too bad we can't get a track in Corpus. I was sad to see him leave the 18, but it was for the better I think. Plus I'm also a huge Yeley fan so it was cool to see him get the ride. Back to point though I think he can win in the 43. I do think it will be at Atlanta when he does. I don't think he can win consistently in the 43 though. That is what makes me sad. PE needs to change manufactures. They wont be able to get anywhere behind Chip, Ray, and Roger. If I was PE I would jump ship to Toyota while they are still young and starting out. Toyota would give them top equipement and top engines. They could be Toyota's flagship team. Since they would have the best chance to make the races. Bobby's expierence could help Toyota make stides in winning. Both PE and Toyota would be able to grow together.

To me they are at a dead end with Dodge. They aren't making a new strides in their engine program running second rate Everhamn engines. Their support falls behind Ray, Rodger, and Chip. To me they wont build anything where they are at. It is sad because both PE and Bobby's careers are moving foward.

I, too, has a fondness for Petty Enterprises. If Kyle's life had been different, in multiple ways, he "might" have been in a position to lead Petty Enterprises successfully into the 21st Century. However, we can only speculate on that one.

I think one of the problems is Richard. First, he has never been famous for spending a lot of money on drivers and teams. The Petty garage lacks a number of expensive gadgets which the more successful shops employ, the five-point shaker rig, for one.

Toyota to Petty...??? It'd be interesting to see how the two entities react to one another, wouldn't it?

Plus, like unsuccessful Morgan-McClure, Petty is rooted to an area far distant from Charlotte. This isn't a determining factor but it sure doesn't help things. I've heard Richard say, many times, that he feels "obligated" to the folks in Randleman who have been with him for decades. A truly honorable and decent point of view, to be sure. But, it "might" be a factor in Petty's lack luster performance?

Please don't construe this as a condemnation, but rather just my thought on the matter.

[Jeffrey4318]

Originally Posted by clutch

6 of the top 10 qualifiers at Atlanta were powered by Dodge.....and 8 of the top 12

the problems that Dodge seemed to have in my mind was more areodynamics than Horsepower, but that seems to have been fixed

I think the cars are fine, I just don't think PE has a chance at being a top dog Dodge team. Kind of like why Robby Gordon left Chevy for Ford. He didn't think he could compete with the top Chevy teams for support. I'm in no way trying to compare PE to Robby's team. Just saying I think if they stay with Dodge they will always be a second tier team. Especially if they keep buying engines from Ray.

My message I was trying to get across is if they are serious about heading back to the top they need a big change. They need a change that will allow them success. It is in my opinion that they should take advantage of Toyota's entrance into Nascar. Toyota's main goal is to put all their teams in great equipement. Make sure that no teams engines are worse than the others. Is Toyota top notch now? No, but doesn't mean they wont take every oppurtunity to get to the top. It is my opinion they both Toyota and PE could ride each other to the top. Just a thought. Remember when JGR drove the Pontiac to two championships? Wasn't the best of cars, but Pontiac gave JGR the best of its support. PE could possible do the same. They definitely wont get that kind of support from Dodge.