Aric Almirola Pays a Special Tribute to ‘Racing Hero’ with a New Livery for Darlington

For the NASCAR throwback race at the Darlington Raceway, Aric Almirola has something special in mind. The veteran driver plans to pay tribute to his father, who is also his racing hero.

As it turned out, Almirola comes from a motor racing background, as his grandfather was also a dirt racing driver. However, the Stewart-Haas Racing driver wanted to focus on his father and use a livery that he used in his racing days.

Almirola, while talking to his dad, said, “So when we walked in, it seemed like he didn’t exactly know what was going on. We did a good job of surprising you. So I obviously got to pick the scheme that I wanted to use for the throwback race at Darlington this year. I picked my racing hero, which is you [his father].”

“I have so many good memories of growing up as a kid. Watching you race and going down to Victory Lane, getting my picture made in Victory Lane.”

“When they told me I could run any scheme I wanted, this is the one I picked.”

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“It’s been a month or two in the works, I’m glad it worked out so, we could surprise you.”

What lies in the future for Aric Almirola?

Earlier this year, he announced that he would retire from full-time racing at the end of the season. Of course, the operative word is ‘full-time’, which leaves things open to interpretation.

So there is a chance that the 38-year-old may still stick around and compete in the odd race or so. Take the example of Dale Earnhardt Jr, who still runs in the Xfinity Series at least once a year, every year.

For now though, the #10 driver is content to just close out the 2022 season and bow out. Admittedly, there is a lot of time before the season ends, as we still have not reached the Playoff stage yet.

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One thing is for sure, Almirola will definitely want to go out on a high note.