Homestead-Miami Speedway and the Homestead Air Reserve Base are teaming up to host a series of Air Force exercises on Wednesday, September 10, at the Homestead Air Reserve Base located in the Speedway’s backyard. Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Smithfield Foods-U.S. Air Force Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports, will meet and greet with active military personnel, as well as participate in various Air Force activities at the Base.
Almirola qualified for the 2014 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup after winning the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway in July under the new qualifying format. The win was his first of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career, and came on the 30th anniversary of Richard Petty’s 300th Cup win in the No. 43 car. Almirola became the first Cup driver other than Petty to win in the legendary No. 43 at Daytona, and also became the first driver of Cuban-American descent to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.
Almirola grew up in Tampa and was born at the Eglin Air Force Base in Fort Walton Beach, located in the Florida panhandle, while his father served in the Air Force. The Air Force has been an associate sponsor of the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports team for six consecutive seasons, and was the primary car sponsor for the Fourth of July race weekend at Daytona, where Almirola captured his first checkered flag in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
Almirola will be able to go into the Base’s “burn pit” and work with the fire response team to perform an exercise requiring him to put out a simulated fire on a jet, and then work with an F-16 crew chief to prep and launch an F-16 jet from the Base. The driver will also interact with the active military members stationed at the Base, participating in a Q&A with the airmen and media.
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