Bobby Labonte facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bobby Labonte
Labonte at Talladega Superspeedway in 2015
Born	Robert Allen Labonte (1964-05-08) May 8, 1964 (age 61) Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S.
Achievements	2000 Winston Cup Series Champion 1991 Busch Series Champion 2001 IROC Champion 1995 Coca-Cola 600 Winner 2000 Brickyard 400 Winner 2000 Southern 500 Winner Oldest winner of a Superstar Racing Experience race (58 years, 2 months, and 1 day old at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway in 2022)
Awards	NASCAR Hall of Fame (2020) Named one of NASCAR's 75 Greatest Drivers (2023)
NASCAR Cup Series career
729 races run over 25 years
2016 position	23rd
Best finish	1st (2000)
First race	1991 Budweiser 500 (Dover)
Last race	2016 Hellmann's 500 (Talladega)
First win	1995 Coca-Cola 600 (Charlotte)
Last win	2003 Ford 400 (Homestead)
Wins Top tens Poles 21 203 26
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
203 races run over 20 years
2016 position	18th
Best finish	1st (1991)
First race	1982 Autumn 150 (Martinsville)
Last race	2016 PowerShares QQQ 300 (Daytona)
First win	1991 Budweiser 250 (Bristol)
Last win	2007 Aaron's 312 (Talladega)
Wins Top tens Poles 10 100 10
NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series career
10 races run over 5 years
Best finish	36th (2005)
First race	1996 GM Goodwrench/AC Delco 300 (Phoenix)
Last race	2007 Michigan 200 (Michigan)
First win	2005 Kroger 250 (Martinsville)
Wins Top tens Poles 1 5 0
Statistics current as of February 3, 2022.

Robert Allen Labonte (born May 8, 1964) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He is now semi-retired from racing. Bobby also works as a TV analyst for NASCAR on Fox. He currently races part-time in the SMART Modified Tour.

Bobby Labonte is famous for winning the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship. His older brother, Terry Labonte, also won a Cup championship. They are one of only two pairs of brothers to both win this top title. Bobby is also the uncle of former Xfinity Series winner Justin Labonte.

Labonte was the first driver to win both the Winston Cup (now Cup Series) and Busch Series (now Xfinity Series) championships. He won the Busch Series title in 1991. He also won the IROC title in 2001. Bobby is the first driver to win races in all three of NASCAR's top series at the same track. He achieved this at Martinsville Speedway.

Early Life and Racing Start

Bobby Labonte was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on May 8, 1964. He started racing very young, in 1969, driving small "quarter midget" cars. He won his first race just one year later. Bobby raced quarter midgets across the U.S. until 1977, winning many events.

In 1978, he moved to go-kart racing. His family then moved to North Carolina. This happened after his older brother, Terry, started racing in the Winston Cup Series. In 1980, Bobby made his debut in the NASCAR International Sedan Series. He finished third in that race in Atlanta. Two years later, he raced in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. This was at Martinsville Speedway, where he finished 30th. After high school, Bobby worked on Terry's race cars. He returned to the Busch Series in 1985. He raced his own car in two events at Martinsville.

Full-Time Racing Career

Busch and Xfinity Series Highlights

By 1990, Bobby Labonte had saved enough money to race full-time. He started his own team and drove the No. 44 Oldsmobile. He had a great year, winning two pole positions at Bristol Motor Speedway. He also finished in the top 5 six times and the top 10 seventeen times. He ended the season in fourth place overall. Fans also voted him the Busch Series' "Most Popular Driver."

In 1991, Bobby continued his success. He won the NASCAR Busch Series championship. He had two wins, ten top-five finishes, and twenty-one top-ten finishes. His first Busch Series win was at Bristol. He won again at O'Reilly Raceway Park in August. That same year, he made two starts in the Winston Cup Series.

The 1992 season was also strong for Labonte. He won three races at Lanier, Hickory, and Martinsville. He just missed winning the championship by three points. This was one of the closest championship finishes in NASCAR history.

In 1994, Bobby had more success as a team owner. His Busch Series driver, David Green, won the championship. Bobby also raced in 12 Busch Series events himself. He won a race at Michigan in August.

In 2007, Labonte won a Busch Series race at Talladega Speedway. He narrowly beat Tony Stewart in an exciting finish. This was his first Busch Series win since 1998. In 2016, Labonte returned to Joe Gibbs Racing. He competed in the Xfinity Series race at Daytona.

Cup Series Highlights

Bobby Labonte's former JGR car on display at the Joe Gibbs Racing headquarters.

At the end of 1994, Labonte joined Joe Gibbs Racing. He replaced Dale Jarrett as the driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Chevrolet. In 1995, Bobby earned his first career win at the Coca-Cola 600. He later said this was his favorite win. He also won both races at Michigan that year. He finished 10th in the overall standings.

In 1996, Labonte won the final race of the season at Atlanta. His brother Terry won the championship in the same race. They took a victory lap together. Bobby called it one of the most emotional moments of his life. He finished 11th in points that year. In 1997, Joe Gibbs Racing switched to Pontiac cars. Labonte won the Atlanta race again, finishing 7th in points.

Bobby Labonte at Richmond in 1998.

In 1998, Labonte won races at Atlanta and Talladega. He also won pole positions for both Daytona races. He finished second to Dale Earnhardt in the Daytona 500. He ended the year in 6th place.

The year 1999 was Bobby's best for wins in one season. He won five Winston Cup races. These included Dover, both Pocono races, Michigan, and the Atlanta finale. He broke his shoulder in a Busch Series qualifying accident. But he still raced in the Cup event two days later. He finished second in points to Dale Jarrett.

In 2000, Labonte won four races. These were at Rockingham, Indianapolis (the Brickyard 400), Darlington (the Southern 500), and Charlotte. He led the points standings for 25 weeks straight. He never gave up the lead and won the Winston Cup championship. He finished ahead of Earnhardt by 265 points. He completed almost every lap that season. He had 4 wins, 19 top-five finishes, and 24 top-ten finishes. He also had an average finish of 7.4. He was the second driver in NASCAR history to win the championship without a "Did Not Finish" (DNF) result.

Labonte No. 43 races to the end of pit lane in 2006

In 2001, Labonte won his first points race of the year at Pocono. He also won at Atlanta. He finished sixth in the final points standings. During 2001, Labonte won the IROC XXV title. He was the 13th NASCAR driver in a row to win the IROC championship.

In 2002, Labonte won one race at Martinsville. This was his first short-track win. He finished 16th in the standings. In 2003, Labonte improved to eighth in the standings. He won two races at Atlanta and Homestead.

In 2005, Labonte raced in some Truck Series events. He won a race at Martinsville. This made him the first driver to win in all three NASCAR series at one track. After 11 seasons, Labonte left Joe Gibbs Racing. He joined Petty Enterprises to drive the famous No. 43 car.

Labonte's 2008 Cup racecar

In 2006, Labonte had three top-5 finishes and eight top-10 finishes. He finished 21st in points. In 2007, he finished 18th in points. In 2008, he had three top-10 finishes. He finished 21st in points again. In December, Labonte left Petty Enterprises.

In 2009, Labonte drove for Hall of Fame Racing. He had one top-5 finish at Las Vegas. Later that year, he drove for TRG Motorsports. He finished 10th at Talladega. In 2010, Labonte drove for TRG Motorsports and Phoenix Racing. He also drove for Stavola-Labonte Racing, co-owned by his brother Terry. He competed in every race that season.

Labonte's No. 47 car during the 2012 Kobalt Tools 400

From 2011 to 2013, Labonte drove the No. 47 car for JTG Daugherty Racing. He finished 4th in the 2011 Daytona 500. This was his 200th career top-10 finish. In 2013, he was replaced in some races. He also broke ribs in a cycling accident. This made him miss three races.

Labonte competed part-time for Go FAS Racing in 2015 and 2016.

In 2014, Labonte announced he would race part-time for HScott Motorsports. He finished 15th in the 2014 Daytona 500. In 2015, he drove for Go FAS Racing on restrictor-plate tracks. He took over from his brother Terry, who retired. He continued with Go FAS Racing in 2016. After the 2016 season, he did not return to the team.

Whelen Euro Series

In 2017, Labonte raced in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series at Brands Hatch. He became the first Cup Series champion to race in this series. He finished 10th and 14th in his two races. In 2018, he joined RDV Competition to race full-time in the Euro Series.

Modifieds / SRX

Labonte started racing in the SMART Modified Tour in 2021. He won two races that year. He also raced in the Superstar Racing Experience (SRX). In 2022, he raced full-time on the SMART Tour.

Broadcasting Career

In February 2014, Labonte became a racing analyst for NASCAR America on NBCSN. He made his TV debut that year. In 2017, Labonte moved to FS1. He became an analyst on Race Hub and Race Day programs.

Personal Life

Bobby Labonte lives in High Point, North Carolina, with his wife, Kristin. He has two children from a previous marriage, Robert Tyler and Madison. Bobby loves outdoor activities. His son, Tyler, went to Texas A&M and is now in law school. Tyler also interned for Interstate Batteries, Bobby's former sponsor. Madison started college in 2017. Bobby's father, Bob, passed away in April 2024.

Labonte started a marketing and public relations company called Breaking Limits. He also owns a Red Mango yogurt shop. The Bobby Labonte Foundation helps children and families in North Carolina. In 2010, Bobby and his brother Terry started Longhorn Chassis. This company builds dirt late model race cars.

Motorsports Career Results Summary

Daytona 500

International Race of Champions (IROC) Results

24 Hours of Daytona Results

24 Hours of Daytona results
Year	Class	No	Team	Car	Co-drivers	Laps	Position	Class Pos.
2005	DP	44	Doran Racing	Pontiac Doran DP	Jan Magnussen Bryan Herta Terry Labonte	675	9 DNF	9 DNF
2006	DP	09	Spirit of Daytona Racing	Pontiac Crawford DP	Doug Goad Harold Primat Larry Oberto	572	35 DNF	17 DNF
2007	DP	19	Finlay Motorsports	Ford Crawford DP	Rob Finlay Michael Valiante Michael McDowell	627	10 DNF	10 DNF
2010	GT	71	The Racer's Group	Porsche GT3 Cup	Tim George Jr. Spencer Pumpelly Timo Bernhard Romain Dumas	668	16	9

Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) Results

^* Season still in progress

Images for kids

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  Labonte's 2016 car at Daytona

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  Labonte's 2007 car

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  Bobby Labonte brings his car in after a crash during the 2007 Ford 300 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway.

See also

In Spanish: Bobby Labonte para niños