After sixty years helping build the sport, it appears the final sun is setting on the Petty Enterprise legacy. Reported talks with Gillett Evernham Motorsports are apparently nearing completion, in what will be the next stage of the Petty legacy.

Last off-season's move from their famed shop in Randleman, NC seemed to mark the beginning of the end for the most famous team in all of NASCAR. The team decided to make the move to Mooresville, NC in order to have the ability to pick from a better pool of potential employees.

In June of this year, the Petty family announced Boston Ventures - a private equity firm that also owns Six Flags, Motown Records and The National Inquirer - had bought majority interest in Petty Enterprises and the Richard Petty Driving Experience. David Zucker joined the organization as its CEO, while Barry Baker came on board as the new Chairman of the company. Since taking over Petty Enterprises, the company has looked to revamp the team into its past glory.

"Richard Petty helped establish the modern NASCAR circuit and is very devoted to his family, racing, and to his business," Baker explained. "We understand his desire to grow the franchise he and his family created so it can continue to be successful for many years to come and we will work with our new partners to achieve that goal."

For the second consecutive year, Kyle Petty stepped out of the No. 45 car for part of the season while Chad McCumbee and veteran Terry Labonte filled in. The third-generation driver made only fifteen starts on the season, making what may have been his final Cup Series start in Phoenix in November. Following the end of the 2008 season and reports of a possible merger with GEM, Petty claimed he no longer worked for the organization and was as out of the loop on things as many asking him questions.

Tough economic conditions and a lack of consistent results led General Mills to leave as the sponsor on the No. 43 Dodge in favor of Richard Childress Racing.

To make matters more interesting for the Petty Enterprises organization, the team released driver Bobby Labonte after the season-finale in Homestead. Now, with no driver signed for the 2009 season and no promising sponsorship investment, the team is clearly moving in the direction of a merger.

As things are looking now, the GEM-Petty merger would take the famed No. 43 to the new team with a possibility of Reed Sorenson behind the wheel. Sorenson signed on with GEM to drive the No. 10 car in 2009, but if this deal goes through, the team may opt to utilize the No. 43's owner points instead. Reports are now surfacing that the new combination - with Ray Evernham now out of the picture as well - may be called Richard Petty Motorsports.

Blame it on the poor economy, a lack of successful results or just call it a passing of the torch, but it appears the sun is truly setting on a legend. No other team can garnish the same respect and admiration like the Petty organization, but all good things must eventually come to an end. Unfortunately for the Petty family and for many of their loyal fans, this year's business transactions seemed a bit too abrupt. While the team may still carry the Petty name and Richard Petty may still be involved, things will never be the same. NASCAR is an ever-changing, ever-evolving sport, and this time the biggest of the big could not even avoid the change.