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Terry Labonte

Terry Labonte

Overview
Terrance Lee Labonte is a semi-retired NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...

 driver who occasionally drives in the Sprint Cup Series when called upon and is a two-time Winston Cup and IROC champion. He currently drives the #32 U.S. Chrome Ford for FAS Lane Racing. Labonte was introduced to the sport through his father, who had worked on race cars as a hobby for his friends. He is the older brother of 2000 Winston Cup champion Bobby Labonte
Bobby Labonte
Robert Alan "Bobby" Labonte is an American race car driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He currently drives the #47 Kroger/Clorox/Kimberly-Clark/Kingsford/Reese Towpower Hitches Toyota Camry for JTG Daugherty Racing. He currently resides in Trinity, North Carolina. He is married to his wife...

, and the father of former Nationwide Series driver Justin Labonte
Justin Labonte
Justin Labonte is a former NASCAR Busch Series driver. He is the son of NASCAR driver Terry Labonte, and the nephew of Bobby Labonte. He currently does not have a ride in the Nationwide Series, and is rumored to be racing late models on North Carolina short tracks...

. Labonte was born in Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties. The MSA population in 2008 was 416,376. The population was 305,215 at the 2010 census making it the...

. He co-owns a Chevrolet dealership in North Carolina with Rick Hendrick
Rick Hendrick
Joseph Riddick Hendrick III , better known as Rick Hendrick, is the current owner of the American NASCAR team, Hendrick Motorsports and founder of the Hendrick Automotive Group and Hendrick Marrow Program. He attended Park View High School in South Hill, Virginia, and began his career in auto...

.
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Encyclopedia
Terrance Lee Labonte is a semi-retired NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...

 driver who occasionally drives in the Sprint Cup Series when called upon and is a two-time Winston Cup and IROC champion. He currently drives the #32 U.S. Chrome Ford for FAS Lane Racing. Labonte was introduced to the sport through his father, who had worked on race cars as a hobby for his friends. He is the older brother of 2000 Winston Cup champion Bobby Labonte
Bobby Labonte
Robert Alan "Bobby" Labonte is an American race car driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He currently drives the #47 Kroger/Clorox/Kimberly-Clark/Kingsford/Reese Towpower Hitches Toyota Camry for JTG Daugherty Racing. He currently resides in Trinity, North Carolina. He is married to his wife...

, and the father of former Nationwide Series driver Justin Labonte
Justin Labonte
Justin Labonte is a former NASCAR Busch Series driver. He is the son of NASCAR driver Terry Labonte, and the nephew of Bobby Labonte. He currently does not have a ride in the Nationwide Series, and is rumored to be racing late models on North Carolina short tracks...

. Labonte was born in Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties. The MSA population in 2008 was 416,376. The population was 305,215 at the 2010 census making it the...

. He co-owns a Chevrolet dealership in North Carolina with Rick Hendrick
Rick Hendrick
Joseph Riddick Hendrick III , better known as Rick Hendrick, is the current owner of the American NASCAR team, Hendrick Motorsports and founder of the Hendrick Automotive Group and Hendrick Marrow Program. He attended Park View High School in South Hill, Virginia, and began his career in auto...

.

Early life


Terry Labonte started racing quarter-midgets when he was 7 and won a national championship at nine before moving onto the local short tracks in a stock car as a teenager. Driving on both dirt and asphalt, he won track championships in his hometown, in Houston
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...

, and in San Antonio
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...

 from 1975 to 1977. During this time he also met Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

 businessman Billy Hagan
Billy Hagan
Billy Joe Hagan was a NASCAR driver/owner from Lillie, Louisiana, USA.-Career:He made three starts in NASCAR's Grand National/Winston Cup division, finishing eighth in his first start, the inaugural Talladega 500 in a self-owned 1968 Mercury Cyclone. He did not field another car until 1975,...

.

1978-1985


Labonte’s first NASCAR start came in 1978 at Darlington Raceway
Darlington Raceway
Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed the "Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition"...

. He qualified nineteenth in the #92 Duck Industries Chevrolet and finished fourth that weekend. He ran four more races that season and had an additional two top-ten finishes. In 1979, he competed for NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year along with Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt
Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...

, Harry Gant
Harry Gant
Harry Phil Gant is a retired American racecar driver best known for driving the #33 Skoal Bandit car on the NASCAR Winston Cup circuit during the 1980s and 1990s.-Nicknames:...

, and Joe Millikan
Joe Millikan
Joseph "Joe" Milikan was a NASCAR Winston Cup race car driver who competed from the 1979 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season to the 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season along with Terry Labonte, Dale Earnhardt, and Darrell Waltrip.He retired prior to 1993 and has never raced during the NEXTEL Cup or...

 while driving the #44 Stratagraph
Stratagraph
Stratagraph is an oil field service company headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana. The primary focus of the business is providing mud logging services to petroleum exploration and production companies.The company was started in 1961 by Billy Hagan...

 Chevrolet for Hagan. Although Labonte failed to win the top rookie award, he was one of three rookies to finish in the top 10 in points. He ended the season with thirteen top-ten finishes. The following year, he won his first career Winston Cup race on Labor Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...

 weekend at Darlington. He won $222,501 in prize money for the year and finished sixth in the final points.



Labonte failed to return to victory lane over the next two years but did not finish outside the top-five in the final standings. He won his second career race in 1983 in the Budweiser
Budweiser (Anheuser-Busch)
Budweiser is a 5.0% abv American-style lager introduced in 1876 by Adolphus Busch and one of the highest selling beers in the United States. It is made with up to 30% rice in addition to hops and barley malt. Budweiser is produced in various breweries located around the world...

 Chevrolet. His team received sponsorship from Piedmont Airlines
Piedmont Airlines (1948-1989)
Piedmont Airlines was a major airline in the United States which operated from 1948 until its operations were merged into USAir in 1989. Its headquarters were located at One Piedmont Plaza in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, a building which is now part of Wake Forest University.As of April 1989,...

 the following season, and he won races at Riverside International Raceway
Riverside International Raceway
Riverside International Raceway was a race track or road course in Riverside, California. The track was in operation from September 22, 1957, to July 2, 1989...

 and Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961...

, clinching his first Winston Cup championship. He dropped to seventh in the final points in 1985. During that same season, he made his Busch Series debut at Charlotte
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Charlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States 13 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend and the Sprint All-Star Race...

 in the #17 Pontiac
Pontiac
Pontiac was an automobile brand that was established in 1926 as a companion make for General Motors' Oakland. Quickly overtaking its parent in popularity, it supplanted the Oakland brand entirely by 1933 and, for most of its life, became a companion make for Chevrolet. Pontiac was sold in the...

 owned by Darrell Waltrip
Darrell Waltrip
Darrell Lee Waltrip is a 3-time NASCAR Cup Series champion , 3-time runner-up , winner of the 1989 Daytona 500 and 5-time winner of the prestigeous Coca-Cola 600 ,...

 and won the 400-mile race, the longest in Busch Series history. Waltrip asked Labonte to drive after deciding to focus his driving his priorities solely to Winston Cup racing during the middle of what would be Waltrip's 307-point gain over Bill Elliott
Bill Elliott
William Clyde "Bill" Elliott , also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville or Million Dollar Bill, is a part-time driver and former champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Elliott was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America on August 15, 2007. He won the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup...

 in the final eight races of the 1985 season.

1986-1993



Labonte fell back to twelfth in the standings in 1986. Before season's end, he announced he was leaving Hagan's team to drive the #11 Budweiser Chevrolet for Junior Johnson
Junior Johnson
Robert Glenn Johnson, Jr. , better known as Junior Johnson, is a retired moonshiner in the rural South who became one of the early superstars of NASCAR in the 1950s and 1960s. He won 50 NASCAR races in his career before retiring in 1966...

's team the next year. In his first season with his new team, he earned four pole-position starts and won the Holly Farms 400, leaping up to third in the final standings. He followed that up with a fourth-place points finish in 1988, including a win in Sprint All-Star Race IV. In 1989, the team switched to Ford Thunderbird
Ford Thunderbird
The Thunderbird , is an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company in the United States over eleven model generations from 1955 through 2005...

s. Despite two wins during the season, he fell back to tenth in the championship.

In 1990 He signed with the #1 Skoal Classic
Skoal
Skoal may refer to:* Skoal, skål, or skál, exclamation in a toasting ceremony* Skoal tobaccoSee also:* Skoll * Skol beer...

 Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile was a brand of American automobile produced for most of its existence by General Motors. It was founded by Ransom E. Olds in 1897. In its 107-year history, it produced 35.2 million cars, including at least 14 million built at its Lansing, Michigan factory...

 team for Precision Products Racing. He had four top-fives and nine top-tens but finished 15th in the points standings. He returned to Billy Hagan's team to drive his #94 Sunoco
Sunoco
Sunoco Inc. is an American petroleum and petrochemical manufacturer headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, formerly known as Sun Company Inc. and Sun Oil Co. ....

 Oldsmobile in 1991, winning his first pole since 1988. He began 1992 with finishes inside the top 8 in each of the first eight races. He had a total of four top-five finishes and sixteen top-tens, ending the season eighth in points. The following season, the team switched to the #14 Kellogg's Chevrolet. While he had ten top-tens, for the first time in his career, Labonte failed to finish a race in the top-five and he dropped to eighteenth in points.

1994-2002



In 1994, Labonte joined Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports , originally named All Star Racing, is a current American auto racing team created in 1984 by Rick Hendrick. The team currently competes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with Chevrolet Impalas...

, racing the #5 Kellogg's Chevrolet and responded by notching 3 wins in each of his first two years there. In 1996, he broke Richard Petty
Richard Petty
Richard Lee Petty is a former NASCAR driver who raced in the Strictly Stock/Grand National Era and the NASCAR Winston Cup Series...

’s streak for consecutive races after winning at North Wilkesboro
North Wilkesboro Speedway
North Wilkesboro Speedway was a short track that held races in NASCAR's top three series from NASCAR's inception in 1949 until its closure in 1996...

. Despite only two victories, Labonte went on to win the championship that year as well, a record-setting twelve years after his first. Driving with a broken hand during the last two races of the season, Labonte and his younger brother Bobby
Bobby Labonte
Robert Alan "Bobby" Labonte is an American race car driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He currently drives the #47 Kroger/Clorox/Kimberly-Clark/Kingsford/Reese Towpower Hitches Toyota Camry for JTG Daugherty Racing. He currently resides in Trinity, North Carolina. He is married to his wife...

 were able to perform a dual victory lap at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway is a track just outside Hampton, Georgia, twenty miles south of Atlanta. It is a quad-oval track with a seating capacity of over 125,000. It opened in 1960 as a standard oval. In 1994, 46 condominiums were built over the northeastern side of the track...

 in the last race of the year; Bobby won the race and Terry the championship on the final day of the season, the only time a driver and his sibling won the race and the championship at the same time.

Labonte posted twenty top-ten finishes in 1997 and notched his only win of the year at the fall race at Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...

. In 1998, Labonte was able to win the Pontiac Excitement 400 and finished ninth in points. Despite a win at his home track at Texas Motor Speedway
Texas Motor Speedway
Texas Motor Speedway is a speedway located in the northernmost portion of the U.S. city of Fort Worth, Texas – the portion located in Denton County, Texas....

 and Sprint All-Star Race XV in 1999, Labonte finished 12th in the championship points, the first time he had finished outside the top-ten since 1993. The year 2000 saw Labonte's consecutive start streak broken at 655 after he suffered inner ear
Inner ear
The inner ear is the innermost part of the vertebrate ear. In mammals, it consists of the bony labyrinth, a hollow cavity in the temporal bone of the skull with a system of passages comprising two main functional parts:...

 injuries at the Pepsi 400 and was forced to miss the Brickyard 400 and the Global Crossing @ The Glen. He began 2001 with two top-six finishes in the first seven races but finished 23rd in the final point standings. He dropped back to 24th in 2002.

2003–2008


In 2003, Labonte won his first pole since 2000 at Richmond
Richmond International Raceway
Richmond International Raceway is a 3/4-mile , D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series...

 and won the Mountain Dew Southern 500 (where 23 years earlier he won his first race) at Darlington Raceway
Darlington Raceway
Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed the "Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition"...

 after leading the last 33 laps. It was only his second win in a crown jewel event (the other being in the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in 1980). That helped lead him to a tenth place spot in the final standings. 2004 was much more of a struggle for Labonte, and Hendrick Motorsports announced Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch
Kyle Thomas Busch, is an American NASCAR driver and team owner. He currently drives the No. 18 Mars/Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Sprint Cup Series, the No. 18 Z-Line Designs/NOS Energy Drink Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs in the Nationwide Series, and the No...

 as Labonte's replacement when he retired. Late in the 2004 season, Labonte announced that 2004 would be his final full-time year on the circuit and would run part-time schedules for the next two years. The part time schedule was nicknamed, "Shifting Gears: Lone Star Style."

Labonte began his semi-retirement in 2005. He borrowed the number 44, his former number, from Petty Enterprises
Petty Enterprises
Petty Enterprises was a NASCAR racing team based in Randleman, North Carolina, USA. The team was owned by Richard Petty, his son Kyle Petty, and Boston Ventures. At the time of its folding the team operated the #43 and #45 Dodge Chargers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Petty Enterprises ran from...

 and ran Hendrick's #44 research and development
Research and development
The phrase research and development , according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of...

 car with sponsorship from Kellogg's, Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut is an American restaurant chain and international franchise that offers different styles of pizza along with side dishes including pasta, buffalo wings, breadsticks, and garlic bread....

, and GMAC. His best finish in 2005 for Hendrick Motorsports came at Pocono Raceway
Pocono Raceway
Pocono Raceway also known as the Tricky Triangle, is a superspeedway located in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania at Long Pond...

, where he finished 12th. He also drove a few races in the #11 Fedex
FedEx
FedEx Corporation , originally known as FDX Corporation, is a logistics services company, based in the United States with headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee...

 Chevrolet for Joe Gibbs Racing
Joe Gibbs Racing
Joe Gibbs Racing is a group of NASCAR racing teams owned and operated by former Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs, who first started racing on the NASCAR circuit in 1991, and J. D. Gibbs, his son...

 following the release of Jason Leffler
Jason Leffler
Jason Leffler is a NASCAR driver from Long Beach, California. Leffler began racing in the open-wheel ranks before moving to NASCAR's three major series...

, with a top finish of 9th at Richmond.

Labonte began the 2006 season driving the #96 Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments Inc. , widely known as TI, is an American company based in Dallas, Texas, United States, which develops and commercializes semiconductor and computer technology...

/DLP HDTV Chevrolet Monte Carlo
Chevrolet Monte Carlo
The Chevrolet Monte Carlo was an American-made two-door coupe introduced for model year 1970, and manufactured over six generations through model year 2007. It was marketed as a personal-luxury coupe through most of its history, with the last model version being classified as a full-sized coupe...

 car for Hall of Fame Racing
Hall of Fame Racing
Hall of Fame Racing was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series racing team principally owned by Jeff Moorad, Tom Garfinkel, and Tom Davin. The team was created as a joint venture between former Dallas Cowboys quarterbacks Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman...

, a new team started by former Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...

 quarterbacks Roger Staubach
Roger Staubach
Roger Thomas Staubach is a businessman, Heisman Trophy winner and legendary Hall of Fame former quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys from 1969 until 1979. Staubach was instrumental in developing the Cowboys into becoming one of the best teams of the 1970s and led the team to nine of the Cowboys'...

 and Troy Aikman
Troy Aikman
Troy Kenneth Aikman is a former American football quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League. The number one overall draft pick in 1989, Aikman played twelve consecutive seasons as quarterback with the Cowboys...

. Labonte's past-champion's provisional guaranteed the team a starting spot in the first five races. Labonte's finishes in those races left the team in 30th place in points, sealing a spot for the team in each race as long as they remained in the top 35. Tony Raines
Tony Raines
Floyd Anthony Raines is an American race car driver. He is a former National Touring Series champion in the now defunct American Speed Association and 1999 Rookie of the Year in the NASCAR Nationwide Series...

 took over the driving duties for the #96 car and ran the rest of the season's races, with the exception of the road-course races at Infineon Raceway
Infineon Raceway
Infineon Raceway, formerly Sears Point Raceway, is a road course and drag strip located on the landform known as Sears Point in the southern Sonoma Mountains near Sonoma, California, USA. The course is a complex series of twists and turns that go up and down the hills...

, in Sonoma, California, and Watkins Glen International
Watkins Glen International
Watkins Glen International is an auto race track located near Watkins Glen, New York, at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. The facility is owned by International Speedway Corporation...

, in Watkins Glen, New York. Labonte's best finish of 2006 came at Infineon, where he finished 3rd due to a fuel mileage gamble by the crew chief of the #96 DLP/Texas Instruments Chevrolet, Philippe Lopez. Labonte also ran ten races with Hendrick Motorsports research and development car in 2006.

During the 2007 season, Labonte drove three races for Michael Waltrip Racing, both road course events, and the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, in the 55 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota Camry.

On May 11, 2008, it was announced that Labonte would drive the #45 car of Petty Enterprises for six races in the middle of the 2008 Sprint Cup season, replacing Kyle Petty
Kyle Petty
Kyle Eugene Petty is a former American NASCAR driver and is currently a co-host for NASCAR RaceDay and panel member for NASCAR Smarts which are both on SPEED. He also commentates for TNT in the summer. He is the son of racer Richard Petty, grandson of racer Lee Petty, and father of the late Adam...

 on a temporary basis. Labonte was reunited with brother Bobby, who was the regular driver of the #43 for Petty. Labonte posted two solid top-twenty runs in the six-race tenure, a 16th at Daytona and a 17th at Infineon, both the best finishes for the 45 car this season. It was later announced that he would drive for Petty again in the Brickyard 400 and would also drive in place of Patrick Carpentier
Patrick Carpentier
Patrick Carpentier is a retired Canadian race car driver. He is best known for his career in the Champ Car World Series and the IndyCar Series. In 2009, Patrick shared the #36 of Tommy Baldwin Racing with Mike Skinner and ran Michael Waltrip's #55 Toyota Camry in the road course races in the...

 in The American Red Cross Pennsylvania 500
Pennsylvania 500
The Good Sam RV Insurance 500 is the second of two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car races held at the Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, the other being the Pocono 500...

. Labonte was back in the #45 car for Petty Enterprises when the Sprint Cup Series went to the Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway is a two-mile moderate-banked D-shaped superspeedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than in Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is sometimes known as a "sister track" to Texas...

 for the 3M Performance 400 on August 17, 2008. He would be back in the #45 car again for the AMP Energy 500 at the Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...

 for the final time in the 2008 Sprint Cup Season. He would go on to post a 17th-place finish, even after sustaining severe damage in one of the multi-car accidents. Labonte's results in 2008 proved far better on average than the previous three seasons, while driving also part-time.

2009-2010


It was reported first on January 23, 2009, that Labonte would attempt to make the Daytona 500
Daytona 500
The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....

 for Prism Motorsports, driving the #66 Window World Toyota. The team announced they planned to race full-time with Dave Blaney
Dave Blaney
David Blaney is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver. He currently drives the #36 Golden Corral/Big Red Chevrolet Impala for Tommy Baldwin Racing. Blaney was a successful sprint car driver before he started racing in NASCAR...

 after Daytona. Labonte started 43rd, and went a lap down. He managed to get his lap back and fought up to finish 24th in the rain-shortened event. Starting at Indianapolis in 2009, Labonte drove the #08 Toyota for Carter/Simo Racing for four races.

It was reported that Labonte would be forming a new team with Bill Stavola, formerly the co-owner of Stavola Brothers Racing
Stavola Brothers Racing
8--98.194.31.156 16:33, 27 November 2011 Stavola Brothers Racing was a NASCAR racing team, owned by Bill and Mickey Stavola, and operating NASCAR Winston Cup and Busch Series teams from 1984 through 1998. The team won the 1988 Daytona 500 with Bobby Allison behind the wheel of the #12 Miller High...

. It has been confirmed that Labonte will drive 3 races in the 2010 Sprint Cup Series season for the team, in the #10 Chevy at Richmond, Charlotte and Texas. Labonte barely missed making the field at Richmond, but took the Gander Mountain
Gander Mountain
Gander Mountain, headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota, is a retail network of stores for hunting, fishing, camping, marine, and other outdoor recreation products and services...

 sponsorship to the #55
Prism Motorsports car which had qualified 37th. Labonte would finish 40th in the race after an accident forced him out. He also raced at Phoenix for Whitney Motorsports
Whitney Motorsports
Whitney Motorsports is a NASCAR team that currently competes in the Sprint Cup Series. It is based in Harrisburg, North Carolina. They currently field the #46Red Line Oil/International Trucks Ford Fusion for Scott Speed and The #81 Ford Fusion for Scott Riggs....

.

2011


It was announced that Frank Stoddard
Frank Stoddard
Frank Stoddard is a NASCAR crew chief and owner from Haverhill, New Hampshire. He is the owner of FAS Lane Racing, a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team. He began his career with Dana Patten in the Busch Series. Later, he worked with Jeff Burton and Roush Racing, and won seventeen races together...

 would be starting his own team, FAS Lane Racing
FAS Lane Racing
FAS Lane Racing is a NASCAR team owned by long-time crew chief Frank Stoddard. It currently fields the #32 U.S. Chrome Ford Fusion for Terry Labonte, Mike Skinner, Ken Schrader, Mike Bliss, and Patrick Carpentier in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.-History:...

, with Labonte driving the #32 U.S. Chrome Ford Fusion in the Daytona 500. Labonte started 43rd and finished a respectable 15th.

Sprint Cup statistics

Year Starts Wins Top Fives Top Tens Poles Rank
2009 4 0 0 0 0 52
Totals 865 22 182 361 27 -


Last Updated: As of Fall Richmond '09

NASCAR official duties


On June 12, 2007, Labonte tested for Richard Childress Racing
Richard Childress Racing
RCR Enterprises, LLC, doing business as Richard Childress Racing, is a NASCAR team based in Welcome, North Carolina, and is owned and operated by former driver Richard Childress...

 at the Montreal's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is a motor racing circuit, venue for the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix, NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series and Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series....

 track in an official NASCAR compatibility test for the August 4 NAPA Auto Parts 200
NAPA Auto Parts 200
The NAPA Auto Parts 200 Presented by Dodge is a NASCAR Nationwide Series race that takes place at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, Quebec, Canada since 2007. It takes place in August, replacing the Champ Car World Series and Atlantic Championship Grand Prix of Montreal...

 presented by Dodge Busch Series event at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is a motor racing circuit, venue for the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix, NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series and Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series....

.

NASCAR wanted a driver they were assured would not race in the NAPA Auto Parts 200, and were concerned Childress drivers Jeff Burton or Kevin Harvick would race in the event.

Honors


In 1998, the senior Labonte was named as one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers
NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers
NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers is a list of NASCAR drivers.In 1998, as part of its 50th anniversary celebration, NASCAR gathered a panel to select "The 50 Greatest NASCAR Drivers of All Time." It was inspired in part by the NBA's decision to select the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History on its 50th...

. A park was renamed for the Labonte brothers in their hometown of Corpus Christi in 2001, and they were chosen for entry into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 2002. Labonte supports a variety of charities and due to his efforts, the Ronald McDonald House in Corpus Christi, the Victory Junction Gang Camp
Victory Junction Gang Camp
The Victory Junction Gang Camp is a camp for terminally ill, and chronically ill children located in Randleman, North Carolina, USA. It is part of the Association of Hole in the Wall Camps.- Mission :MISSION STATEMENT:...

 near Randleman, North Carolina, and the Hendrick Marrow Program all have benefited.

Competition in other series


In addition to his 22 wins in Sprint Cup, Labonte has won 11 races in the Nationwide Series and 1 in the Craftsman Truck Series
Craftsman Truck Series
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing...

. He has been the champion of the 24 Hours of Daytona
24 Hours of Daytona
The 24 Hours of Daytona, currently known as the Rolex 24 Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on a combined road course, utilizing portions of the NASCAR tri-oval and an infield...

 and 12 Hours of Sebring
12 Hours of Sebring
The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport endurance race for sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, a former Army Air Force base in Sebring, Florida...

 as well as three all-star races: the Busch Clash (now known as the Budweiser Shootout
Budweiser Shootout
Budweiser Shootout at Daytona, generally referred to as the Bud Shootout, is an annual invitation-only NASCAR Sprint Cup Series exhibition event held at Daytona International Speedway in February, the weekend before the Daytona 500. It is the first competitive event of the season and serves as a...

) in 1985 and The Winston (now the Sprint All-Star Challenge) in 1988 and 1999. He also won the IROC
International Race of Champions
International Race of Champions, better known as IROC, was a North American auto racing competition, promoted as an equivalent of an American All-Star Game or The Masters...

 championship in 1989. Including his two championship seasons, he has finished in the top 10 in the year-end standings 17 times, and his top-five and top-ten totals approach 25 percent and 50 percent, respectively, of his total races.

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