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NASCAR: Aric Almirola confirmed at Stewart-Haas Racing in 2018

By Asher Fair

KANNAPOLIS, NC - NOVEMBER 08: NASCAR driver Aric Almirola (R) and John Pauley, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Smithfield, pose for a photo opportunity with the #10 Smithfield Ford following a press conference at Stewart-Haas Racing on November 8, 2017 in Kannapolis, North Carolina. Stewart-Haas Racing introduced Almirola as their driver of the #10 Smithfield Ford for the 2018 season. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Stewart-Haas Racing via Getty Images)
KANNAPOLIS, NC - NOVEMBER 08: NASCAR driver Aric Almirola (R) and John Pauley, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Smithfield, pose for a photo opportunity with the #10 Smithfield Ford following a press conference at Stewart-Haas Racing on November 8, 2017 in Kannapolis, North Carolina. Stewart-Haas Racing introduced Almirola as their driver of the #10 Smithfield Ford for the 2018 season. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Stewart-Haas Racing via Getty Images) /
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It’s official: Aric Almirola will be Danica Patrick’s replacement at Stewart-Haas Racing in the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season.

Aric Almirola, 33, will replace Danica Patrick, 35, as the driver of the #10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford in the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season after driving the #43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford in each of the last six seasons, his only six full-time seasons in the sport.

Almirola was the overwhelming favorite to land the ride after Patrick announced that she would be leaving Stewart-Haas Racing after the conclusion of this season following five full seasons with the team. Richard Petty Motorsports announced that they would be cutting ties with him, and Smithfield Foods, the current sponsor of his #43 Ford, announced that they would be moving from Richard Petty Motorsports to Stewart-Haas Racing.

Almirola is set to team up with 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick, who drives the #4 Ford, and Clint Bowyer, who drives the #14, next season at Stewart-Haas Racing. The driver of the #41 Ford is still not yet known, as it has not yet been announced as to whether or not 2004 Cup Series champion and 2017 Daytona 500 Kurt Busch will be returning for his fifth season with the team.

So far this season, Almirola has driven in 27 of the 34 Cup Series races, as he missed seven races due to injuries he suffered in a nasty wreck at Kansas Speedway in May.

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In his 27 races so far this season, Almirola has racked up three top 5 finishes and five top 10 finishes. His best finishes of the season are 4th place finishes in the Daytona 500 and in the May Talladega race. His other top 5 finish was a 5th place result in the October Talladega race, giving him three top 5 finishes in the three restrictor plate races in which he has driven this season. He missed the July Daytona race as a result of the injuries he suffered in that wreck at Kansas. His two non-top 5 top 10 finishes were both 9th place results, as he finished in 9th in the April Richmond race and in the October Kansas race. He sits in 29th in the championship standings with two races remaining this season.

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In 242 career NASCAR Cup Series starts, Almirola has one race win to his name in the 2014 July Daytona race. He has also recorded one pole, 11 top 5 finishes and 31 top 10 finishes. How will he perform at Stewart-Haas Racing in the 2018 season, his first season driving for a top-tier organization? Can he handle the pressure? He says it’s what he wants.

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