Benson returns, Nadeau in at Petty

With Johnny Benson recovering from his rib injury, which means he will return to his Valvoline Pontiac at Pocono this weekend, NASCAR Winston Cup 'superbsub' Jerry Nadeau has instead landed a drive with Petty Enterprises for the rest of the season

Jul 24, 2002, 10:20 AM

Nadeau, who was fired from his Hendrick Motorsports ride in May, almost won the Sears Point race for Petty's team in a one-off drive and was leading when he suffered a mechanical failure. Now he has taken over the car on a full time basis from Steve Grissom.

"This is a great opportunity to be able to drive again for this team," said Nadeau. "We had a really good run at Sears Point, and I really respect [crew chief] Greg Steadman and the guys who prepare this car. Everyone in this organization is really committed to being a champion, and I am ready to win."

Nadeau has only won one Winston Cup race, the 2000 season finale at Atlanta Motor Speedway. He almost won that again last year too, but his car ran out of fuel in the final laps.