Richard "Slugger" Labbe (born June 14, 1968) is an American technical consultant who currently works for

Toyota Racing Development Toyota Racing Development (also known by its abbreviation TRD) is the in-house tuning shop for all Toyota, Lexus and formerly Scion cars. ''TRD'' is responsible both for improving street cars for more performance and supporting Toyota's racin ...

. He had previously been employed in

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and h ...

as a

crew chief Crew chief may refer to: * Crew Chief, the in-flight aircraft maintenance technician with various aircrew duties and responsibilities in a military aircraft. *Crew chief, the lead official (basketball), official in a basketball game * Crew chief, ...

for

Yates Racing Yates Racing was an American stock car racing team that competed in NASCAR through the 2009 season, after which it merged into Richard Petty Motorsports. Previously known as Robert Yates Racing, the team was owned by Doug Yates, who has officia ...

Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI) was a race team founded by Dale Earnhardt and his wife, Teresa Earnhardt, to compete in the NASCAR series, the highest level of competition for professional stock car racing in the United States. From 1998 to 2009, t ...

Richard Petty Motorsports Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) was an American professional stock car racing team that competed in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded as a result of the merger between Gillett Evernham Motorsports (GEM) and Petty Enterprises, with f ...

Richard Childress Racing Richard Childress Racing (RCR) is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The team is based in Welcome, North Carolina, and is owned and operated by Richar ...

and others. He has also previously served as an analyst for

NASCAR on NBC ''NASCAR on NBC'' (visually branded as ''NBC NASCAR'' in logos shown within on-air graphics and network promotions) is the branding used for broadcasts of NASCAR races that are produced by NBC Sports, and televised on several NBCUniversal-owned ...

Early life

Labbe was born in

Saco, Maine Saco is a city in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 20,381 at the 2020 census. It is home to Ferry Beach State Park, Funtown Splashtown USA, Thornton Academy, as well as General Dynamics Armament Systems (also known by i ...

and introduced to racing at a young age. His father, Ray, worked on cars in the NASCAR

Busch North Series The ARCA Menards Series East (formerly Busch East Series, Busch North Series, Camping World East Series, and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East) is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) an ...

and often brought his son to the events. In 1984 at the age of 15, Labbe began work on the crew of a Late Model stock car team. Two years later he began working in the NASCAR Busch North Series.

NASCAR career

In 1989, Labbe moved to

Hickory, North Carolina Hickory is a city located primarily in Catawba County, with formal boundaries extending into Burke and Caldwell counties. The city lies in the U.S. state of North Carolina. At the time of the 2020 census, Hickory's population was 43,490. Hic ...

to compete in NASCAR’s

Busch South Series Busch may refer to: People *Busch (surname) Places *Busch (Ortsteile), a subdivision of the municipality of Odenthal, Germany *Busch, Missouri, a ghost town in the United States *Germán Busch Province, Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia **Puerto Bu ...

. Working as a mechanic for NASCAR Busch Series driver

Tommy Houston Tommy Houston (born January 29, 1945) is a retired NASCAR Busch Series driver. Over his career, Houston and Jack Ingram became known as the pair of journeymen drivers that helped that series grow throughout the 1980s and early 1990s. Houston wa ...

, the team finished second in the NASCAR Busch Series South championship. In 1991, Labbe moved into the NASCAR

Nationwide Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

, working with driver

Terry Labonte Terrance Lee Labonte (born November 16, 1956), nicknamed Texas Terry or The Iceman, is an American former stock car driver who raced from 1978 to 2014 in the former NASCAR Winston Cup and Sprint Cup Series (now called the NASCAR Cup Series). A two ...

. In three seasons the team captured five victories. In 1994, Labbe joined Hendrick Motorsports, assuming the duties of front tire changer and mechanic for his No. 5 team in the Winston Cup Series. Labbe became the

car chief In motorsports, a pit stop is a pause for refuelling, new tyres, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, as a penalty, or any combination of the above. These stops occur in an area called the pits, most commonly accessed via a pit lan ...

in his second year with the organization and helped them win the Unocal pit crew championship and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship in 1996. In 1998, Labbe joined

Robert Yates Racing Yates Racing was an American stock car racing team that competed in NASCAR through the 2009 season, after which it merged into Richard Petty Motorsports. Previously known as Robert Yates Racing, the team was owned by Doug Yates, who has official ...

(RYR) when he was offered the crew chief position for the No. 28 car driven by

Kenny Irwin, Jr Kenneth Dale Irwin Jr. (August 5, 1969 – July 7, 2000) was an American stock car racing driver. He had driven in all three NASCAR national touring series, and had two total victories, both in the Craftsman Truck Series (today Camping World Truck ...

. He led the team for 29 races. Irwin, Jr. earned the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Raybestos Rookie of the Year that year. Labbe remained at RYR through 2000. In September 2001, Labbe accepted a position with

becoming the crew chief for the No. 15 car driven by

Michael Waltrip Michael Curtis Waltrip (born April 30, 1963) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, racing commentator, and published author. He competes full time in the Camping World Superstar Racing Experience. He is the younger brother ...

. Labbe led Waltrip to 3 of his 4 Cup wins, and one Daytona 500. In 2005, Labbe moved to

Evernham Motorsports Evernham Motorsports was an American professional stock car racing organization that competed in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 2000 by former Hendrick Motorsports crew chief Ray Evernham, entering full-time competition as a two ...

and served as crew chief for

Jeremy Mayfield Jeremy Allen Mayfield (born May 27, 1969) is an American stock car racing driver. He drove cars for the Sadler brothers, T.W. Taylor, Cale Yarborough, Michael Kranefuss, Roger Penske, Ray Evernham, Bill Davis, and Gene Haas. In 2009, he drove ...

. The team won the race at

Michigan International Speedway Michigan International Speedway (MIS) is a moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than approximately south of the village of Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is ...

that year and qualified for a berth in the

Chase for the Sprint Cup The NASCAR playoffs is a championship playoff system used in NASCAR's three national series. The system was founded as 'The Chase for the Championship' on January 21, 2004, and was used exclusively in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2004 to 2015. S ...

. Returning to Yates Racing in 2006, Labbe worked with NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion

Dale Jarrett Dale Arnold Jarrett (born November 26, 1956) is a former American race car driver and current commentator for NBC. He is best known for winning the Daytona 500 three times (in 1993, 1996, and 2000) and winning the NASCAR Winston Cup Series champi ...

for the first 20 races of the season. Labbe missed four races that season due to a suspension handed down by NASCAR for an illegal sway bar mount. Labbe spent the first half of 2007 with

Sterling Marlin Sterling Burton Marlin (born June 30, 1957) is an American semi-retired, professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes part-time JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour, driving the No. 114 for Sterling Marlin Racing. He formerly competed in the ...

MB2 Motorsports MB2 Motorsports was a NASCAR Cup Series team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, near the sport's hub in Charlotte. The team was founded by Read Morton, Tom Beard, and Nelson Bowers, from which the original team name were named after. Bowers w ...

but then headed to

High Point, North Carolina High Point is a city in the Piedmont Triad region of the U.S. state of North Carolina. Most of the city is in Guilford County, with parts extending into Randolph, Davidson, and Forsyth counties. High Point is North Carolina's only city that ex ...

and

Bill Davis Racing Bill Davis Racing was a racing team that participated in all three of NASCAR's top divisions until 2009. The team had run Toyota-branded stock cars and trucks in the Camping World Truck Series (Toyota Tundra) since 2004 and Sprint Cup Series (To ...

for the second. Labbe began the 2008 season working with

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship ...

champion

Jacques Villeneuve Jacques Joseph Charles Villeneuve ( born 9 April 1971) is a Canadian professional racing driver and amateur musician who won the 1997 Formula One World Championship with Williams. In addition to Formula One (F1) he has competed in various o ...

helping him with the switch from open wheel to NASCAR before sponsorship fell through. He also took on a coaching role with NASCAR newcomer

Scott Speed Scott Andrew Speed (born January 24, 1983) is an American race car driver who has competed in numerous disciplines, including open-wheel, stock car, and rallycross racing. In , Speed became the first American driver to race in Formula One sin ...

in the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards, the

Camping World Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of ...

, and the Sprint Cup Series. Labbe coached Speed to his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win at the spring event at

Dover International Speedway Dover Motor Speedway (formerly Dover Downs International Speedway and later Dover International Speedway) is a race track in Dover, Delaware. The track has hosted at least one NASCAR Cup Series race each year since 1969, including two per year ...

. Later they earned their first pole at

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. Bristol is among the m ...

that fall. In 2009, Labbe moved to

TRG Motorsports The Racer's Group, or TRG, is a WeatherTech SportsCar Championship racing team located in Petaluma, California, owned by Kevin Buckler and his wife Debra. TRG has competed professionally in road racing since 1995. The team formerly competed in ...

leading

David Gilliland David Leonard Gilliland (born April 1, 1976) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. Since 2017, he has operated David Gilliland Racing, a team that races in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, ARCA Menards Serie ...

in the team’s first season in NASCAR Sprint Cup. In 2010, he was crew chief for the

(RPM) car driven by Paul Menard in his fourth full-season of Sprint Cup. In 2011, Labbe and Menard departed the financially struggling RPM team to go race at Richard Childress Racing as a fourth team with the number being 27 and the sponsor being

Menard's Menards is an American home improvement retail company headquartered in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Menards is owned by founder John Menard Jr. through his privately held company, Menard, Inc. It has 335 stores in 15 states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

. On July 31, 2011, Menard won his first career NSCS race at the

Brickyard 400 The Brickyard 400 was an annual NASCAR Cup Series points race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The inaugural race was held in 1994 and was the first race other than the Indianapolis 500 to be held at the Indianapolis Moto ...

. The pairing remained together through at least 2013. In 2015, RCR assigned Labbe as the new crew chief for Austin Dillon driver of the No. 3 Chevrolet SS, who previously had Gil Martin as crew chief.

Post-NASCAR

On May 22, 2017, Labbe was relieved from his duties as being a crew chief of the No. 3 car. He was replaced by Justin Alexander, who won with the 3 team in his first race. Soon after, Labbe joined

as an analyst. In September 2017, he joined

in a vehicle support role. In 2018, he focused on Toyota's programs in the

NHRA The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and hosts events all over the United States and Canada. With over 40,000 drivers in its rosters, the NHRA claims to be the largest motorspo ...

and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Labbe, Slugger Living people NASCAR crew chiefs 1968 births People from Saco, Maine Stock car racing