Richard Petty Motorsports unveils Brian Scott’s new ride — and number

Richard Petty Motorsports has a new driver with an old traditional Petty number. Brian Scott (Boise High) joined the team in December for his first full-time Sprint Cup Series ride, and the team unveiled Scott’s No. 44 Ford on Monday.

Richard Petty’s son, Kyle, drove the 44 from 1997-2000, and RPM last used the number full-time in 2009 with A.J. Allmendinger behind the wheel. Richard Petty won nearly all of his races with the iconic No. 43, which Aric Almirola drives now.

“For us, the numbers are more than just a number you could say,” Richard Petty said in a press release. “They really represent our family history, our legacy and everyone who has worked for us or raced for us. We take a lot of pride in that and are glad to have the 44 back home.”

The car appears to retain primary sponsorship with Twisted Tea Hard Iced Tea but changes from the No. 9 used by Sam Hornish Jr. last season.

“I think it’s special to be with an organization with such history and then to be able to put your name in their history,” Scott said. “Richard Petty’s history and recognition around NASCAR is his number. To go back to what everyone considers to be Petty history with the 44, I think it’s really special to be the driver that gets to do that.”

This story was originally published January 11, 2016 at 11:48 PM with the headline "Richard Petty Motorsports unveils Brian Scott’s new ride — and number."