Haas-CNC and Labonte team up in 2005

kelloggs5TLfan

kelloggs5TLfan

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AVONDALE, Ariz. -- Nextel Cup driver Terry Labonte and owner Gene Haas have formed a partnership to field a Busch Series team next season for Labonte's 23 year-old son, Justin.

Justin Labonte ran a limited scheduled this season with his own team, and won the race at Chicagoland. Labonte already has the Coast Guard lined up to sponsor his team full-time next season.


Haas CNC Racing has run a full-time Busch program this season with drivers Jason Leffler and most recently Blake Feese.


The new combined program will operate out of Haas' Busch shop located near Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. Haas will continue to receive chassis, engine and technical support from Hendrick Motorsports, where Terry Labonte has driven since 1994. The team will also continue to use Chevrolets.


"With us all driving Chevrolets it will allow us to do more promotions together than when I was driving a Dodge," Justin Labonte said.


"This is going to be a great opportunity for me, to be running for a championship with a team that has been in the top-five in points most of the year."
 
Terry Labonte and Gene Haas have formed a partnership to field Chevrolets for Justin Labonte in the NASCAR Busch Series. Justin, Terry’s 23-year-old son, is running a limited Busch Series schedule this year backed by the United States Coast Guard. The Coast Guard announced in September that they would be back with Labonte for the full 35-race Busch Series schedule in 2005. The Coast Guard team will be run out of the Haas CNC Racing facility near Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Haas receives chassis, motor and technical support from Hendrick Motorsports for his Nextel Cup and Busch Series programs. Terry Labonte has been a Hendrick Motorsports driver since 1994, and won the second of his two Nextel Series championships driving for Hendrick in 1996. Terry Labonte, named by NASCAR as one of their Top Fifty all time drivers in 2000, recently announced that he will begin to wind down his driving career by running 10 Nextel Cup races for Hendrick Motorsports in each of the next two years and then retire as a driver after the 2006 season.
“When I announced that I was cutting back on my racing I said that much of the free time it would create for me would be devoted to helping Justin with his driving career,” said Terry Labonte. “This partnership with Gene Haas is just the beginning of that effort. I plan to be at most of their races and support them and our team in anyway I can. We have accomplished a lot this while running a partial schedule with a team started from scratch. Justin won his first Busch Series race at Chicagoland in only our seventh start. For Justin to take the next step and to be able to compete for the championship, we needed to get him aligned with an organization that has a Nextel Cup alliance.”
Gene Haas is also thrilled about the relationship saying, “I am very excited about the opportunity to team up with Terry Labonte and the Coast Guard for the 2005 season. I think we will have a good chance to contend for the championship. With Justin Labonte behind the wheel of the Coast Guard Chevrolet and Hendrick engines I know we have a winning combination.”
Justin Labonte will be back running for Chevrolet just like his dad and uncle, Bobby Labonte. “With us all driving Chevrolets we will be able to do more promotions together than when I was driving a Dodge,” said Justin. “This is going to be a great opportunity for me and the Coast Guard -- to be running for the championship with a team that has been in the Top Five in points most of the year. Both of our teams have won a race this year so we know what we’re all capable of accomplishing.”
Justin will begin his association with the new program starting at Darlington next week where he will drive the #00 Haas Automation Chevrolet. The Darlington race was not on Team Coast Guard Racing’s 15-race schedule this year. Justin will run the final Busch Series race of 2004 in the #44 Coast Guard Shield of Freedom Chevrolet out of the Haas shop as they get ready for a run at the 2005 NASCAR Busch Series championship.(Coast Guard Racing site), it doesn't say if the car will be #44 or #00 or if it will be a two car team.(
 
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