Aric Almirola

Aric Almirola ( born March 14, 1984 in Tampa, Florida) is an American NASCAR driver. He is currently driving for Billy Ballew Motorsports in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He studied mechanical engineering at the University of Central Florida.

Career

Early years

Almirola began racing at the age of eight years to go-karts. At 14, he graduated from national races. In the debut race at the World Karting Association, he just scored the pole position and finished the championship in fourth. Two years later he moved to the so-called " Modifieds " and posted in various racing series, the award for Rookie of the Year.

For the 2002 season, Almirola moved into the NASCAR Sun Belt Weekly Racing Division and finished the season second in the rookie standings. In the following season, 2003, he started five times from pole position. In 2004 he took part at the "Drive for Diversity " program of NASCAR and signed a contract with Joe Gibbs Racing as a junior driver. This season he drove the race at the Ace Speedway, and won two of them, so that he lay in the championship at the end of eleventh place. In the 2005 season, he won five more races at the Speedway. He also made ​​his debut in the Craftsman Truck Series for Morgan - Dollar Motorsports. In the four races in which he competed, Almirola scored two top-10 results.

Joe Gibbs Racing (2006-2007)

In the 2006 season, Almirola drove the Chevrolet with the start number 75 for Spears Motorsports in the Craftsman Truck Series in the framework of the junior program of Joe Gibbs Racing. In the course of the season, he scored three top - 10 finishes with a ninth place as best result. He also drove nine races in the Nationwide Series for Joe Gibbs Racing in the # 19 His best result was an eleventh place at Dover International Speedway. Furthermore, he was a test driver for JJ Yeley and Denny Hamlin, while they had scheduling conflicts in the Nextel Cup and Busch Series.

In the 2007 season, Almirola drove a total of 18 races in the Busch Series in the car with starting number 18 and 20 for Joe Gibbs Racing. At the very first race of the season, the Orbitz 300 at Daytona International Speedway he won the second official pole position in one of the top divisions of NASCAR - he scored the first pole position in 2006 in Milwaukee, the car for the race but had to dispose to Denny Hamlin. This season, Almirola scored again the pole position in Milwaukee, but since Hamlin not timely appeared for the start of the race, he could even take the start of the race. On lap 59 Hamlin took the wheel, as Almirola was at this time in third place. Hamlin won the race, but the Almirola victory was awarded because he had started the race. At the end of the season, he finished in 29th place in the championship.

Also Almirola was in the 2007 season, his debut in the Nextel Cup UAW - DaimlerChrysler 400 in Las Vegas, which he finished at No. 41.

Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (2007-2009)

Among other things, a result of the incident in Milwaukee Almirola Joe Gibbs Racing decided to leave. Even in the 2007 season he drove five more races in the Nextel Cup for his new team Ginn Racing or after its sale for Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Best result was a 26th place. For the 2008 season in the Sprint Cup driver Almirola was set as the number 8 next to Mark Martin, who share the car. His best half of the season was an eighth place during the Food City 500 in Bristol. Later in the season followed by a third place at the Martinsville Speedway.

In the 2009 season was planned with the number 8 for the complete season contest. However, after the seventh race of the season the team had to be closed for lack of money.