“Somebody’s missing the boat.” was the comment from a race fan in the stands on Sunday afternoon in Phoenix. The Pettit Racing 03 Ford lined up 7th for the 100-lap race barren of any sponsor decals. I could not have said it better myself. The driver, Jim Pettit II, who has finished 3rd in points for the last two years and continues to impress everyone in the Tour, somehow does not have a sponsor. In a sport famous for sponsorship plugs, and with Jim’s charisma, sportsmanship and veteran team, Pettit would seem a sponsor’s dream. The highest finisher from the Southwest Tour at the Toyota All- Star Showdown as 2nd overall against the 40 best Elite Division drivers in the country, was ready for the show to begin. The 03 Ford rolled off empty of decals to start the 2004 “Winter Heat”. 55 teams showed up for the NASCAR AutoZone Southwest Series opening race but only 42 could start the Elite Division main event. That means 13 teams packed up and went home without racing, some coming from as far away as Washington and Wisconsin.
The race started with Lamar the driver of the #1 being black- flagged for jumping the start. Lamar was able to rally back through the field to finish 6th. To run in the top 5 for the majority of the day, Pettit’s #03 made quick work of cars of #70 Greg Pursley and #15 Joey Miller. Between laps 4 and 49, Pettit traded positions with the #62 Eric Holmes who finished in 8th and the #29 Nick Lynch who finished 30th. Between laps 51 and 89, Pettit raced with Eddie Hoffman of the #8 car, a Midwest driver who was involved in a racing incident and finished 10th. Over the first 90 laps there were five cautions but none that affected the positioning of the #03 car. There was one close call but the Turn 2 spotters safely guided Pettit around the crash. The field restarted on lap 94 and the final caution flew on the last lap. Pettit had just passed the veteran Kenny Schrader for 3rd when the late race caution ended the race with a yellow/checkered. Under the new NASCAR rules the field finished exactly “as they were” at the time of the caution.
It is said that “good things come to those who wait” and
maybe that is the case here. The Pettit team has a good work
ethic, a great crew, and a passion for racing. One thing is
sure and that is that the 03 Ford is fast and is well on its
way to a championship. Despite the lack of a sponsor, the
team is excited about this year and knows they are doing all
the right things to win a championship. They invite all the
fans to the next race at Madera, where Pettit was the track
champion in 2000.
