Team: Petty Enterprises
Car/sponsor/make: No. 43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge
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| | Andretti |
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STATS
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Year
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Rank
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Wins
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Top 5
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Top 10
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Best finish
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2002
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28
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0
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0
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1
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10th (Sonoma, Calif.)
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Career
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2
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13
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36
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First, twice
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2002 recap
The good: He improved slightly from his 2001 finish, going from 31st to 28th in the standings. Rumors swirled that he would leave Petty Enterprises at the end of the season, with the likelihood of returning to open-wheel racing. However, Andretti recently inked a one-year deal to remain in the Petty fold -- marking his sixth consecutive season with the team.
Season highlight: When you notch just one top-10 in a season, there's not much to put on your highlight reel. Other than his finish at Sonoma, Calif., Andretti's only other highlights were two top-5 qualifying efforts: second in the season's next-to-last race at Phoenix (finished 14th), as well as fifth in the Pennsylvania 500 (finished 23rd). He also had one other top-10 start: 10th at Michigan in the Pepsi 400 (finished 20th).
The bad: There were a number of lowlights for Andretti and his team in 2002. The team failed to finish nearly one-fifth of the races (seven out of 36) due to crashes or mechanical failures. And then there's consistency, or lack thereof. With the exception of an 18th at Rockingham, N.C., and 14th at Phoenix, Andretti failed to post back-to-back strong finishes last season.
Season lowlight: Andretti had three finishes of 40th or lower in 2002, but his most disappointing outing came at the season-opening Daytona 500, where he qualified a respectable 16th, but was caught up in an 18-car pileup, ending the day in 37th.
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| John Andretti hopes to rebound from a poor season in 2002. |
Key stat: There's little in the way of statistics that would be considered impressive, with the possible exception that the team improved in the final standings from 2001 to '02, going from 31st to 28th.
2003 outlook
What needs to be done: A complete overhaul would only help this team. But short of that, it may be time for a personality change for Andretti. He may be one of the most personable drivers on the circuit, but that doesn't lend itself well to banging fenders with others. Andretti, who is one of the cleanest racers on a track, could help his team if he steps forward in 2003 with a harder edge. If other drivers realize they can't take advantage of Andretti, it will only help.
Prediction: While he won't have to worry about where his next meal will be coming from, it's likely we'll see more of the same from Andretti and the rest of Petty Enterprises next season. If the team can finally gain some consistency, he could finish in the top-20. But, if consistency continues to haunt the team, you'll see Andretti again finish as an also-ran.
Your take
Can Andretti and his Petty Enterprises team turn things around next year? Or will we see a repeat of 2002? Here's what our users had to say about Andretti's prospects for the 2003 season.
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