Almirola to make Cup debut for Dale Earnhardt Inc.

Aric Almirola went from Joe Gibbs Racing to Ginn Racing to Dale Earnhardt Inc. in a matter of days. But he has yet to make a NASCAR Nextel Cup Series start for his new team.
He will make his DEI Cup debut this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Almirola will be in the No. 01 Chevrolet for DEI, the car Mark Martin drove in the Cup race at Michigan International Speedway. Martin is racing a partial schedule and was not expected to make the Bristol start.
It will be Almirola's second career Cup start.
"In less than a week, I went from Joe Gibbs Racing to Ginn Racing to DEI," said Almirola. "Everything is great and I'm excited to get strapped into the Army Chevy and do battle at Bristol. It's an awesome track and it's important for me to show our soldiers and DEI that I am capable of doing a good job for them."
Almirola has two Busch Series starts at Bristol and even though he is a Cup rookie, he said he knows about the pitfalls of Bristol.
"It's a demanding track, but luck is also a big factor there," Almirola said. "I don't plan on finishing with a clean car, but I do plan on finishing all the laps. My goal is to be competitive and run strong."
Almirola will also be in the Busch Series race at Bristol. In his previous two Busch Series starts there, Almirola started 15th. He finished 20th in the August 2006 race at Bristol. He did not finish his second race at Bristol, earlier this year in March.
"I don't have a lot of experience at Bristol, but I have had enough to know that you have to be patient and totally focused," Almirola said. “It’s a demanding track and you can’t ever let your guard down.”