<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> 38 </Td> <Td> 0 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> Statistics current as of September 24, 2017 . </Td> </Tr> <P> Aric A. Almirola (born March 14, 1984) is an American professional stock car racing driver . He currently drives the No. 43 Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series . He also drives the No. 98 Ford Mustang for Biagi - DenBeste Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series on a part - time basis . Almirola attended the University of Central Florida to work on a degree in mechanical engineering before leaving to pursue a career in racing . He is nicknamed "The Cuban Missile" due to his Cuban heritage . </P> <P> Almirola was born on Eglin Air Force Base in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, of Cuban descent . He began racing go - karts when he was eight years old . At 14, he began racing nationally . He won the pole position in his debut in the World Karting Association race and finished fourth in the standings that year . Two years later, he moved up into modifieds and won several Rookie of the Year awards . </P>

Who drives the number 43 car in nascar