Terrance Lee Labonte (born November 16, 1956), nicknamed "Texas Terry" or "the Iceman", is an American former

stock car Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses. It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It originated in the southe ...

driver. He raced from 1978 to 2014 in the former NASCAR Winston Cup and Sprint Cup Series (now called the

NASCAR Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), the most prestigious stock car racing series in the United States. The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, ...

). A two-time Cup Series champion in 1984 and 1996 and the 1989 IROC champion, he is the older brother of 2000 Cup Series champion

Bobby Labonte Robert Allen Labonte (born May 8, 1964) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and current analyst for ''NASCAR on Fox''. He also currently competes part-time in the SMART Modified Tour, driving the No. 18L for Hermie Sa ...

, and the father of former

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 ...

driver Justin Labonte. He also co-owns a Chevrolet dealership in

Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the List of municipalitie ...

with Rick Hendrick. He appeared on the CBS series ''

The Dukes of Hazzard ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy television series created by Gy Waldron that aired on CBS from January 26, 1979, to February 8, 1985, with a total of seven seasons consisting of List of The Dukes of Hazzard episodes, 147 ...

'' in 1984, where he played an unnamed pit crew member.

Early life

Terry Labonte was born in

Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi ( ; ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, Texas, Nueces County with portions extending into Aransas County, T ...

, in 1956. He was introduced to racing at an early age through his father, who had worked on race cars as a hobby for his friends. He started racing quarter midgets when he was seven and won a national championship at nine before moving onto the local short tracks in a stock car as a teenager. He graduated from

Mary Carroll High School Mary Carroll High School, often referred to as Carroll, is one of six high schools that are part of the Corpus Christi Independent School District. History Opened in 1957, Mary Carroll High School is currently the second largest and third oldest ...

in 1975."Caller Times: Guess Who Went to High School Around Here"
Sunday, October 21, 2001. Driving on both dirt and asphalt, he won track championships in his hometown, in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, and in

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

between 1975 and 1977. During this time he also met

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

businessman Billy Hagan.

Racing career

Hagan Racing

Labonte’s first NASCAR race came in 1978 at

Darlington Raceway Darlington Raceway is a egg-shaped oval track in Darlington, South Carolina. The track has hosted a variety of racing events since its inaugural season of racing in 1950; primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The venue has a capacity of 47,00 ...

. He qualified 19th in the No. 92 Duck Industries Chevrolet and finished 4th that weekend. He ran four more races that season and had an additional two Top 10 finishes. In 1979, he competed for NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year honors along with

Dale Earnhardt Ralph Dale Earnhardt (; April 29, 1951February 18, 2001) was an American professional Stock car racing, stock car driver and racing team owner, who raced from 1975 to 2001 in the former NASCAR Winston Cup Series (now called the NASCAR Cup Serie ...

Harry Gant Harold Phil Gant"Harry P. Gant"
(born January 10, 1940) is an American former

Joe Millikan while driving the No. 44 Stratagraph 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 13 Top 10 finishes. The following year, he won his first career Winston Cup race on

Labor Day Labor Day is a Federal holidays in the United States, federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday of September to honor and recognize the Labor history of the United States, American labor movement and the works and con ...

weekend at Darlington. He won $222,501 in prize money for the year and finished eighth in the final points standings. Labonte failed to return to victory lane over the next two years but didn't finish outside the Top 5 in the final standings. He won his second career race in 1983 in the

Budweiser Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, a brand of Belgian company AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States. Budweiser is a filte ...

-sponsored Chevrolet. In 1984, his team received a sponsorship from

Piedmont Airlines Piedmont Airlines, Inc. ( ) is an American regional airline headquartered at the Salisbury Regional Airport in Wicomico County, Maryland, near the Salisbury, Maryland, city of Salisbury. The airline is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the American ...

and he won races at

Riverside International Raceway Riverside International Raceway (sometimes known as Riverside, RIR, or Riverside Raceway) was a motorsports race track and road course established in the Edgemont area of Riverside County, California, just east of the city limits of Riversid ...

and

Bristol Motor Speedway Bristol Motor Speedway (formerly known as the Bristol International Raceway from 1978 to 1996 and as the Bristol International Speedway from 1961 to 1978) is a oval Oval track racing#Short track, short track in Bristol, Tennessee. The track ha ...

as well as clinching his first Winston Cup championship. He dropped to 7th in the final points in 1985. During that season, he made his Busch Series debut at Charlotte in the No. 17 Pontiac owned by

Darrell Waltrip Darrell Lee Waltrip (born February 5, 1947) is an American motorsports Color analyst, analyst, author as well as a former national television broadcaster and stock car driver. He raced from 1972 to 2000 in the NASCAR Cup Series (known as the NAS ...

and won the race. Waltrip asked Labonte to drive after deciding to focus his driving priorities solely on Winston Cup racing during what would be Waltrip's 307-point gain over

Bill Elliott William Clyde Elliott Sr. (born October 8, 1955), also known as "Awesome Bill from Dawsonville", "Million Dollar Bill", or "Wild Bill" is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed in the Superstar Racing Experienc ...

in the final eight races of the 1985 season.

Junior Johnson & Associates

Labonte fell back to 12th in the standings in 1986. Before season's end, he announced he was leaving Hagan's team to drive the No. 11 Budweiser Chevrolet for

Junior Johnson Robert Glenn Johnson Jr. (June 28, 1931 – December 20, 2019), better known as Junior Johnson, was an American professional stock car racing driver, engineer, and team owner as well as an entrepreneur. He won 50 NASCAR races in his career befor ...

's team beginning the following year. In his first season with this team, he earned four pole-positions and won the Holly Farms 400, leaping up to 3rd in the final standings. He followed that up with a rth-place points finish in 1988, as well as The Winston. In 1989, the team switched to

Ford Thunderbird The Ford Thunderbird is a personal luxury car manufactured and marketed by Ford Motor Company for model years 1955 to 2005, with a hiatus from 1998 to 2001. Ultimately gaining a broadly used colloquial nickname, the ''T-Bird'', Ford Introduce ...

s. Despite two wins during the season, he fell back to 10th in the championship.

Precision Products Racing

In 1990, he signed with Leo Jackson's Precision Products Racing team

Greensboro News & Record The ''News & Record'' is an American, English language newspaper with the largest circulation serving Guilford County, North Carolina, and the surrounding region. It is based in Greensboro, North Carolina, and produces local sections for Greensbo ...

- ED HARDIN Staff Sports Writer Jan 16, 1990 https://www.greensboro.com/labonte-chooses-new-racing-team/article_1ec39004-a2fd-513d-92f7-17221347d7ee.html to drive the No. 1 Skoal Classic

Oldsmobile Oldsmobile (formally the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors) was a brand of American automobiles, produced for most of its existence by General Motors. Originally established as "Olds Motor Vehicle Company" by Ransom E. Olds in 1897, it produc ...

. He had four Top 5's and nine Top 10's and finished 15th in the points standings. Terry Labonte scrapped plans for 1990 to run a self-owned independent team, because he couldn't land a full sponsorship, the News-Record of Greensboro, N.C. reported in 1990, and he signed to the Precision Products Racing team.

Return to Hagan Racing

Labonte came back to Hagan Racing to drive the No. 94

Sunoco Sunoco LP is an American master limited partnership organized under Delaware General Corporation Law, Delaware state law and headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Dating back to 1886, the company has transformed from a vertically integrated energy ...

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 5 finishes and 16 Top 10 finishes, ending the season 8th in points. In 1993, the team switched to the No. 14

Kellogg's Kellanova, formerly known as the Kellogg Company and commonly known as Kellogg's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational food manufacturing company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, US. Kellanova produces and markets con ...

Chevrolet. While he had ten Top 10's, for the first time in his career, Labonte failed to finish a race in the Top 5 and he dropped to 18th in points. On July 1, 1993, it was announced that Terry Labonte would be leaving Hagan Racing following 1993 to drive for

Hendrick Motorsports Hendrick Motorsports is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All-Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 316 Cup Series ra ...

in 1994.

Hendrick Motorsports

After leaving Hagan Racing in 1993, Terry Labonte was signed to

in 1994, where he began driving the No. 5

Chevrolet Lumina. In 1995, the team switched to Chevrolet Monte Carlos and won three races including the fall Goody's 500 event at Bristol, where the front of Labonte's car was wrecked after

crashed into him in the final lap. In 1996, he broke

Richard Petty Richard Lee Petty (born July 2, 1937), nicknamed "the King", is an American former stock car racing driver who competed from 1958 to 1992 in the former NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series (now called the NASCAR Cup Series), most nota ...

’s streak for consecutive races after winning at North Wilkesboro. Despite only two victories, Labonte went on to win the championship, 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 were able to perform a dual victory lap at

Atlanta Motor Speedway Atlanta Motor Speedway (currently known as EchoPark Speedway for sponsorship reasons, formerly known as the Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Hampton, Georg ...

in the last race of the season; Bobby won the race and Terry won the championship on this race, making it the only time a driver and his sibling won the race and the championship at the same time. Labonte posted 20 Top 10 finishes in 1997 and collected his only win of the season at the fall race at

Talladega Superspeedway Talladega Superspeedway (Alabama International Motor Speedway from 1969 to 1989) is a tri-oval superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Built in 1969, the track has hosted a variety of racing events, primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The track is ...

. In 1998, it was the final season to have Labonte's trademark mustache, where he went on to win the Pontiac Excitement 400 and finished 9th in points. With a win at his home track at Texas Motor Speedway and in the Sprint All-Star Race XV in 1999, Labonte finished 12th in points, the first time he had finished outside the Top 10 since 1993. Labonte shaved his mustache off in 1999, where his most famous race was the 1999 Goody's Headache Powder 500 at Bristol. He was involved in one of the most infamous and controversial NASCAR finishes ever, when he was spun out by a lapped Darrell Waltrip while leading with ten laps to go when he slowed the field under caution. Labonte pitted for four tires and quickly recovered and was leading with one lap remaining. However, Dale Earnhardt, who was in second at the time, wrecked Labonte half-way to the checkered flag and won. Labonte finished 8th while wrecking. In victory lane, Dale Earnhardt maintained that it wasn't on purpose. In a post-race interview, Labonte didn't buy Earnhardt's excuses, angrily stating " arnhardtnever intends to take anybody out...it just happens that way." The 2000 season saw Labonte's consecutive start streak broken at 655 after he suffered

inner ear The inner ear (internal ear, auris interna) is the innermost part of the vertebrate ear. In vertebrates, the inner ear is mainly responsible for sound detection and balance. In mammals, it consists of the bony labyrinth, a hollow cavity in the ...

injuries in the Pepsi 400 and was forced to miss the

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

and the Global Crossing @ The Glen. 2000 was also his first winless season since 1993. His younger brother Bobby won that year's championship. He began 2001 with two Top 6 finishes in the first seven races but continued to fall in the points standings. Labonte’s trademark mustache returned mid-season but his fortunes did not change, eventually finishing the 2001 season in 23rd place. Even though he dropped back to 24th in 2002 with one Top 5 finish and four Top 10's, 2002 marked a definite turning point for Labonte with the appointment of veteran crew chief, Jim Long, to the team. In 2003, Labonte won his first pole since 2000 at Richmond and won the

Mountain Dew Southern 500 A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually highe ...

where 23 years earlier he won his first in 1980 at

after leading the last 33 laps. This 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 10th-place spot in points. About 90% of the NASCAR fans have labeled the 2003 Southern 500 win as the most popular win of 2003. The 2004 season was much more of a struggle for Labonte, and Hendrick Motorsports announced

Kyle Busch Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation)#ZL1, Chevrolet ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and par ...

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".

Semi-retirement years

Hendrick Motorsports

Labonte began his semi-retirement in 2005. He borrowed the number 44, his former number, from

Petty Enterprises Petty Enterprises (formerly Lee Petty Engineering) was a NASCAR racing team based in Level Cross, Randolph County, North Carolina, Level Cross, North Carolina, United States, USA. It was founded by Lee Petty with his two sons Richard Petty and Ma ...

and ran Hendrick's No. 44

research and development Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in some countries as OKB, experiment and design, is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products. R&D constitutes the first stage ...

car with some sponsorships from Kellogg's,

Pizza Hut Pizza Hut, LLC is an American multinational pizza restaurant chain and international franchise founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas, by brothers Dan and Frank Carney. The chain, headquartered in Plano, Texas, operates 19,866 restaurants worldw ...

, and GMAC. His best finish in 2005 for Hendrick Motorsports came at

Pocono Raceway Pocono Raceway (formerly known as the Pocono International Raceway in early years) is a tri-oval track in Blakeslee, Pennsylvania. The track has held a variety of events since its opening in 1969, including NASCAR, IndyCar Series, and IMSA GT ...

, where he finished twelfth. Labonte also ran ten races with Hendrick Motorsports research and development car No. 44 in 2006.

Joe Gibbs Racing

Labonte also drove five races in the No. 11

FedEx FedEx Corporation, originally known as Federal Express Corporation, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate holding company specializing in Package delivery, transportation, e-commerce, and ...

Chevrolet for

Joe Gibbs Racing Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is an American professional stock car racing organization founded by Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs. His son, J. D. Gibbs, ran the team with him until his death in 2019. Founded in Huntersville, North Carolina, ...

following the release of Jason Leffler, with a top finish of 9th at Richmond.

Hall of Fame Racing

Labonte began the 2006 season driving the No. 96

Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) is an American multinational semiconductor company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. It is one of the top 10 semiconductor companies worldwide based on sales volume. The company's focus is on developing analog ...

/ DLP HDTV Chevrolet Monte Carlo car for Hall of Fame Racing, a new team started by former

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

quarterbacks Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman. 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 30th in points, sealing a spot for the team in each race as long as they remained in the Top 35. Tony Raines took over the driving duties for the No. 96 car and ran for the rest of the season, with the exception of the road-course races at Infineon Raceway and

Watkins Glen International Watkins Glen International, nicknamed "The Glen", is an automobile race track in the Northeastern United States, northeastern United States, located in Dix, New York, just southwest of the village of Watkins Glen, New York, Watkins Glen, at the ...

. Labonte's best finish of 2006 came at Infineon, where he finished 3rd due to a fuel mileage gamble by Philippe Lopez, the crew chief of the No. 96 DLP/Texas Instruments Chevrolet.

Michael Waltrip Racing

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 No.55 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota Camry. His best finish in the No. 55 was 30th twice, at Indianapolis and Watkins Glen.

Petty Enterprises

On May 11, 2008, it was announced that Labonte would drive the No. 45 car of Petty Enterprises for six races in the middle of the 2008 Sprint Cup season, replacing

Kyle Petty Kyle Eugene Petty (born June 2, 1960) is an American former stock car racing driver and current racing commentator. He is the son of racer Richard Petty, grandson of racer Lee Petty, and father of racer Adam Petty, who was killed in a crash duri ...

on a temporary basis. Labonte was reunited with brother Bobby, who was the regular driver of the No. 43 for Petty. Labonte posted two solid Top 20 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

Labonte was back in the No. 45 car for Petty Enterprises when the Sprint Cup Series went to the

Michigan International Speedway Michigan International Speedway (formerly named as the Michigan Speedway from 1997 to 2000) is a D-shaped oval superspeedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. It has hosted various major auto racing series throughout its existence, including NASCAR, Cham ...

for the 3M Performance 400 on August 17, 2008. He would be back in the No. 45 car again for the AMP Energy 500 at the

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.

Gillett Evernham Motorsports

Labonte drove the #10

Valvoline Valvoline Inc. ( ) is an American retail automotive services company based in Lexington, Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky. It licenses the name for a number of Valvoline-labeled Motor oil, automotive oil, Oil additive, additives, and lubricants. It ...

car in place of

Patrick Carpentier Patrick Carpentier (born August 13, 1971) is a Canadian former professional auto racing driver. In the Champ Car World Series and the IndyCar Series, he achieved five wins and 24 podiums, as well as two third place championship finishes in 2002 C ...

in The American Red Cross Pennsylvania 500.

Prism Motorsports

It was reported first on January 23, 2009, that Labonte would attempt to make the

Daytona 500 The Daytona 500 is a NASCAR Cup Series motor race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is the first of two Cup races held every year at Daytona, the second being the Coke Zero Sugar 400, and one of three ...

for Prism Motorsports, driving the No. 66 Window World Toyota. The team announced they planned to race full-time with

Dave Blaney David Louis Blaney (born October 24, 1962) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver. Blaney was a successful Sprint car racing, sprint car driver before he started racing in NASCAR, competing in both the Sprint Cup Series ...

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.

Carter/Simo Racing

Starting at Indianapolis in 2009, Labonte drove the No. 08 Toyota for Carter/Simo Racing for four races.

Stavola Labonte Racing/Prism Motorsports

It was reported that Labonte would be forming a new team with Bill Stavola, formerly the co-owner of Stavola Brothers Racing. In the team's debut, Labonte barely missed making the field at Richmond, but took the Gander Mountain sponsorship to the No. 55 Prism Motorsports car which had qualified 37th. Labonte would finish 40th in the race after an accident forced him out. It is not known for sure what caused the demise of Stavola Labonte Racing, as the team seemed to dissolve sometime after the 2010 season.

Whitney Motorsports

Labonte also raced at Phoenix in 2010 for Whitney Motorsports.

FAS Lane Racing/Go Fas Racing

Entering 2011, it was announced that Frank Stoddard would be starting his own team, FAS Lane Racing, with Labonte driving the No. 32 U.S. Chrome Ford Fusion in the Daytona 500. Labonte started 43rd and finished a respectable 15th. At the time, Labonte was semi-retired, but competed in seven additional races over the course of the year in the No. 32. He returned to Stoddard's 32 car in 2012 where he would run all four

restrictor plate A restrictor plate or air restrictor is a device installed at the intake of an engine to limit its power. This kind of system is occasionally used in road vehicles (e.g., motorcycles) for insurance purposes, but mainly in automobile racing, to li ...

races with C&J Energy Services as the sponsor. He finished with three Top 20's out of the four starts, including a season-best 16th in the October race at

. Labonte led the 2012 Daytona 500 briefly before being spun by Marcos Ambrose. He would continue on to finish 18th. In 2013, Labonte would run five races for FAS Lane Racing, posting a best finish of 19th. In addition to running all four restrictor plate races, he ran at

in March, finishing 25th. In 2014, FAS Lane Racing would merge with Go Green Racing to form Go Fas Racing, and announced that Labonte would again return to the No. 32 car for all four superspeedway events. He ran as high as 6th in the

before being swept up in a late crash and finishing 20th. Before the race, Labonte called this his final Daytona 500 start. At the 2014 Coke Zero 400, his final start at Daytona, he dodged two huge wrecks and finished a solid 11th-place after the race was called 112 laps in due to rain. On October 17, Labonte announced the GEICO 500 was to be his 890th and final start. To commemorate the occasion, Go Fas Racing designed a car split into three designs: the

design from his 1996 title run on the driver side, the

design from his 1984 championship year on the passenger side, and the Duck Industries design from his early career in the center. However, NASCAR did not allow the scheme, due to a rule stating cars must have the same colors on both the driver side and passenger side of the car for safety reasons; the team would switch to the former design, while being allowed to retain the center. Labonte qualified 9th, but because of the unapproved paint scheme, was forced to start at the tail end of the field. He would finish in 33rd place, one lap down in his final race.

Competition in other series

In addition to his 22 wins in the Sprint Cup Series, Labonte has won 11 races in the

and 1 in the

Craftsman Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck-based stock car racing, s ...

, as well as three all-star races: the Busch Clash in 1985 and The Winston (now the Sprint All-Star Challenge) in 1988 and 1999. He also won the IROC championship in 1989 with one win, and assisted the late Davey Allison to the 1993 IROC championship by driving his car to a 6th-place finish in the final race of the season. 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. Labonte holds the record for most seasons between championships, with twelve seasons in between his 1984 & 1996 championships. Labonte also collected class wins at the two most prestigious endurance races in the United States, the

24 Hours of Daytona The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car racing, sports car Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Flo ...

and

12 Hours of Sebring The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race for Sports car racing, sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, on the site of the former Hendricks Army Airfield World War II air base in S ...

, driving a GTO-class

Chevrolet Camaro The Chevrolet Camaro is a mid-size American automobile manufactured by Chevrolet, classified as a pony car. It first went on sale on September 29, 1966, for the 1967 model year and was designed to compete with the Ford Mustang. The Camaro sha ...

during the 1984 IMSA GT Championship season.

Honors

NASCAR Hall of Fame

On February 21, 2014, Labonte was nominated for the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2015, along with 19 other candidates. This occurred not long after NASCAR revised the rules allowing current drivers eligibility into the Hall provided they are at least 55 years of age or have 30+ years of NASCAR experience.Elliott, Labonte Headline Top NASCAR Hall of Fame Nominees
/ref> After being passed over as a first-ballot inductee for the class of 2015, Labonte was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2016 on May 20, 2015. Joining Labonte in the 2016 class were Speedway Motorsports Executive Chairman

Bruton Smith Ollen Bruton Smith (March 3, 1927 – June 22, 2022) was an American motorsports executive and businessman. He was best known as the owner of two public companies, Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (SMI) and Sonic Automotive. Smith held the positions ...

, and drivers Curtis Turner, Bobby Isaac, and Jerry Cook. On January 26, 2017 Labonte was named to the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.Terry Labonte
at the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America

Other

In 1998, the senior Labonte was named as one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers. 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 near Randleman, North Carolina, and the Hendrick Marrow Program all have benefited.

TV and movie appearances

In the 1983

Hal Needham Hal Brett Needham (March 6, 1931 – October 25, 2013) was an American Stunt performer, stuntman, film director, actor, writer, and NASCAR team owner. He is best known for his frequent collaborations with actor Burt Reynolds, usually in film ...

Burt Reynolds Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. (February 11, 1936 – September 6, 2018) was an American actor most famous during the 1970s and 1980s. He became well known in television series such as ''Gunsmoke'' (1962–1965), '' Hawk'' (1966) and '' Dan Augus ...

movie '' Stroker Ace'', Labonte appeared as himself (but credited as a "NASCAR Driver"), along with many other contemporary drivers.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Cup Series

=Daytona 500

Busch Series

SuperTruck Series

Season still in progress
¹ Ineligible for series points

24 Hours of Daytona

( key)

References

External links

* *
Terry Labonte
at NASCAR.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Labonte, Terry Living people 1956 births Sportspeople from Corpus Christi, Texas Racing drivers from Texas 24 Hours of Daytona drivers NASCAR drivers American Speed Association drivers International Race of Champions drivers Rolex Sports Car Series drivers NASCAR Cup Series champions NASCAR team owners American automobile salespeople Hendrick Motorsports drivers Joe Gibbs Racing drivers NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees Evernham Motorsports drivers Michael Waltrip Racing drivers

Early life

Racing career

Hagan Racing

Junior Johnson & Associates

Precision Products Racing

Return to Hagan Racing

Hendrick Motorsports

Semi-retirement years

Hendrick Motorsports

Joe Gibbs Racing

Hall of Fame Racing

Michael Waltrip Racing

Petty Enterprises

Gillett Evernham Motorsports

Prism Motorsports

Carter/Simo Racing

Stavola Labonte Racing/Prism Motorsports

Whitney Motorsports

FAS Lane Racing/Go Fas Racing

Competition in other series

Honors

NASCAR Hall of Fame

Other

TV and movie appearances

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

Cup Series

=Daytona 500

Busch Series

SuperTruck Series

24 Hours of Daytona

See also

References

External links