CONCORD, N.C. – Team owner Richard Petty has traditionally avoided any link to an alcohol-company sponsorship. But following a planned merger with Gillett Evernham Motorsports, the newly named Richard Petty Motorsports will feature a Budweiser-sponsored car.

Still, while the group will have the company logos on Kasey Kahne's No. 9 NASCAR Sprint Cup entry, Petty is still trying to stay a step away from endorsing the sponsor. He points out that was a deal that GEM majority owner George Gillett Jr. had in place - and one that will not carry over to the teams that carry more traditional Petty numbers.

“We’ve joined an existing team that already had sponsorship," Petty said Monday during the Sprint Media Tour hosted by Lowe's Motor Speedway. "Budweiser has been really, really good for racing. They’ve put us in every bar in the country. … So they have really been strong, so that’s sort of George’s side of the ball game.

"We bring in the [Nos.] 43 and the 44 … You won’t see any Budweiser decals or any beer deals on those particular cars because my mother would come back to haunt us all [if she saw that] on our car. This is more of a corporation situation.”  - scenedaily.com