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Thread: Paul Menard to retire from full-time Cup after 2019; Matt DiBenedetto to join Wood Br

  1. #1
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    Paul Menard to retire from full-time Cup after 2019; Matt DiBenedetto to join Wood Br

    Paul Who?


    UPDATES:

    Menards and it’s affiliated companies will continue to sponsor the No. 21 team.
    The technical alliance with Team Penske will continue.
    Matt DiBenedetto’s new contract is for one year.
    DiBenedetto was the first choice to replace Menard.

    Jordan bianchi asking if Matt was the first choice. We asked Paul who to get. Paul said Matt. so he was the obvious and only choice. most things drag on forever but this one fell together super quick

    — Wood Brothers Racing (@woodbrothers21) September 10, 2019

    I don’t even have the words to describe how thankful I am!! Paul is such a great guy and I’m lucky to call him a friend and I wish him the best! So excited to take over and drive for one of the most legendary teams in NASCAR next year! I have so many people to thank!!!! 🥳 https://t.co/qJy1kcpV10

    — Matt DiBenedetto (@mattdracing) September 10, 2019

    ORIGINAL RELEASE:

    STUART, VA (September 10, 2019) – Wood Brothers Racing, the oldest active NASCAR team and one of the winningest teams in series history, announced today that driver Paul Menard will transition from full-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) racing after the 2019 season. Matt DiBenedetto will join the team next season and will race the iconic No. 21 Ford Mustang beginning in 2020.

    Over the last two seasons, Menard has driven the No. 21 Menards/Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Centers Ford for Wood Brothers Racing, which formed a technical alliance with Team Penske in 2015. After 16 seasons and more than 460 Cup Series races, the veteran driver has made the decision to move on from full-time Cup Series racing after 2019 and spend more time with his family.

    “I’ve enjoyed every moment of my career racing in the NASCAR Cup Series and I’m so thankful for all the great memories and friendships I’ve made through this sport. But I’m looking forward to spending more time at home with my wife Jennifer and our two young children while moving forward with the next chapter of my life,” said Menard. “I want to thank everyone at Wood Brothers Racing, along with Team Penske, and our partners at Menards, Motorcraft, Quick Lane Tire & Auto Centers and Ford. It’s been a privilege to work with them and some of the true legends of our sport, including Andy Petree, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Robert Yates, Richard Petty, Richard Childress, Roger Penske and Glen and Leonard Wood. I’m excited for what the future holds and I’m looking forward to sharing the plans for 2020 and beyond in the coming weeks.”

    Currently competing in his fifth MENCS season, DiBenedetto has been one of the most productive drivers in NASCAR’s premiere series over the last few months. The 28-year-old native of Grass Valley, Calif., has earned six top-10 finishes over the last 10 MENCS races, including three top-five results. DiBenedetto has led 143 laps this season, including at the Daytona 500 and a race-high 93 laps en route to a runner-up result at the Bristol Night Race in August.

    “I am so excited about this opportunity to race for one of the most successful teams in NASCAR history beginning in 2020,” said DiBenedetto. “The No. 21 Ford is one of the most accomplished and iconic cars in our sport and it will be an honor to join Wood Brothers Racing and help carry on the team’s tradition of success in NASCAR. I want to thank Eddie and Len Wood, Kim Wood Hall, Menards, Edsel Ford and Ford Motor Company for this opportunity.”

    Wood Brothers Racing will look to add to its winning legacy of 99 all-time Cup Series victories with DiBenedetto behind the wheel of the No. 21 Ford Mustang in 2020.

    “We want to thank Paul Menard for his dedication to the team over the last two seasons. We’re looking forward to a strong finish to 2019 and we wish him nothing but the best for the future,” said team President and Co-Owner Eddie Wood. “All of us at Wood Brothers Racing are excited to welcome Matt DiBenedetto to the team beginning next season. Matt has shown a lot of promise on track and everyone has seen it in his results this season, especially over the past several months. We want to continue to build on that success together as we gear up for 2020 and the future of Wood Brothers Racing.”

    — Wood Brothers Racing —

    "You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be." -- Albus Dumbledore...

  2. #2
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    If it weren't for his daddy's home improvement chain (Menards), Paul wouldn't have a ride anywhere...
    Maybe the family wants Paul to dedicate the rest of his life to helping the family business, which a few years ago, branched out into doing HO scale buildings for model railroaders! (Menards has a nice HO scale Taco Bell in its kit lineup!).
    "Argument is an intellectual process. Contradiction is just the automatic gainsaying of anything the other person says." 'Argument Clinic', Monty Python's Flying Circus

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