Labonte to Replace Ambrose for JTG Daugherty in 2011

JTG Daugherty Racing announced today that 2000 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Bobby Labonte will take the reins as driver of the No. 47 Toyota Camry for the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 36-race schedule. 

“JTG Daugherty Racing is a solid race team that has come close to winning races with Marcos Ambrose and I’m looking forward to developing our new partnership in 2011,” Labonte said. “The team is thriving and their technical alliance with MWR (Michael Waltrip Racing) is intact. It’s great to have next year already set in stone so when this season ends we can begin focusing on next year right away. Everything is in place and we have all the right ingredients to win races together.”

Labonte’s credentials speak for themselves. The Corpus Christi, Texas native is a 21-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winner with 26 pole awards, 114 top-five and 199 top-10 finishes. Team owners Jodi and Tad Geschickter and Brad Daugherty are pleased Labonte accepted the offer to drive the JTG Daugherty Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series entry as they enter their third full-time season of competition at Daytona International Speedway on February 13th.

“We are really happy Bobby has decided to join our team because I have known him for a long time and I have always admired him as a professional driver and as an individual,” Daugherty said. “He will do an outstanding job representing our products and team. He has gotten to a point in his career that he still has some things to accomplish. He is highly experienced with a championship on his résumé’ and we know he is capable of winning.”

“We would like to give a warm welcome to Bobby as he joins the JTG Daugherty Racing family,” said Jodi Geschickter. “We know he is an amazing fit for our sponsors and racing organization. The Labonte name has a history of excellence. Bobby is a proven winner, a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion and his character is solid. We share similar goals and views regarding the future. We are pleased that he has accepted the offer to join JTG Daugherty Racing in 2011.”

JTG Daugherty Racing’s partners concur.

“We are extremely excited to have Bobby coming on board,” said Grant LaMontagne, Senior Vice President and Chief Customer Officer of The Clorox Company,  the longest running sponsor partner of JTG Daugherty Racing. “He’s a champion and a great fit for our brands. We expect to have a serious run for the Chase next season.”

This announcement follows Marcos Ambrose’s decision to part ways with JTG Daugherty Racing at the end of the year, which was confirmed on Tuesday by team officials.
Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett / Getty Images for NASCAR)

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Labonte to make 600th start Saturday

When the field takes the green flag Saturday night for the Coke Zero 400, it will mark Bobby Labonte's 600th start in the Sprint Cup Series. After spending the first part of the season with TRG Motorsports and racing for Robby Gordon last weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Labonte will be behind the wheel of the No. 09 entry of Phoenix Racing for the milestone start.

"Having 600 starts, wow, that is a lot of racing," Labonte said. "It is just an honor and a privilege to be able to have that many races under my belt."

To read the rest of this article, visit Cup Series News and Notes.

Photo of Bobby Labonte courtesy of NASCAR Media.

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Bobby Labonte secures race deals with Robby Gordon Motorsports, Phoenix Racing

Bobby Labonte cut ties with TRG Motorsports on Wednesday and will pilot Sprint Cup rides for Robby Gordon Motorsports this weekend at New Hampshire and then Phoenix Racing at Daytona and Chicagoland.

Labonte has driven the No. 71 Chevrolet for TRG Motorsports since November 2009. But the 2000 Sprint Cup champion never finished higher than 21st in 16 starts this year.



Labonte had to start and park in three of the last five races because the team, in its second year of Sprint Cup competition, was unable to secure the sponsorship to run the full length of all races this season, according to a report in Scene Daily.

The story quotes Labonte as saying he did not "want to do the start-and-park thing.”

"I felt like I needed to find different opportunities that were going to allow me to race,” Labonte said.

Labonte believes he has found that with Robby Gordon Motorsports and Phoenix Racing. For the next three Sprint Cup events, both teams plan to run the entire race with Labonte in the driver's seat.

On Sunday, Labonte will helm the No. 7 Toyota in the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire in a one-race deal for Robby Gordon Motorsports.

"When we found out that Bobby was available to drive for us, we jumped at it," said team owner Robby Gordon in a press release. "To have a past champion driving your car is a good opportunity. I think we can learn from him this weekend and it will help our program moving forward."

Robby Gordon Motorsports finished second in last weekend's race at Infineon. Labonte hopes to keep up the momentum this weekend.

"We're going to New Hampshire with the goal of having another solid run for his team. ... I'm just thankful for the opportunity and hope to get another solid finish for his team," Labonte said in the release.

Labonte will team with Phoenix Racing in the No. 09 Chevrolet for two events, the Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola at Daytona on July 3 and the LifeLock.com 400 at Chicagoland on July 10. The deal will allow Labonte to run the full race when he makes his 600th career start at Daytona.

"It's good to know that we'll have a past champion in our car for these two races," team owner James Finch said in a prepared statement. "I've known Bobby for a while and he always works hard behind the wheel. This is a good opportunity for us to race for a win."

Phoenix Racing continues to look for sponsorship for both events. The team plans to have Labonte run more races if it can secure funding.

Labonte has 21 victories in 598 Sprint Cup starts. He currently sits 31st in driver points.

PHOTO FROM NASCAR MEDIA

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