Labonte to the #47 in 2011?

[labontefanboy]

Labonte to the #47?: Bobby Labonte is the leading candidate to drive the #47 Toyota for JTG Daugherty Racing in 2011, multiple sources confirmed Tuesday. JTG Daugherty Racing will be the sixth team in four years for Labonte, who left Petty Enterprises after the 2008 season. In 2009, he drove for Hall of Fame Racing in a #96 Ford fielded by Yates Racing for much of the year but found himself out of a ride late in the season. He drove the remaining races for #71 TRG Motorsports and started 2010 with that organization. He left that seat in June when the team began having to park early in events because of a lack of funding. He has driven for Robby Gordon Motorsports and Phoenix Racing in the months since then and will be back in a TRG car this weekend at Pocono Raceway. The 2000 Cup champion, Labonte has 602 career Cup starts with 21 victories. The 46-year-old Labonte will replace Marcos Ambrose, who announced Tuesday he was parting ways with the team after the 2010 season. A Bobby Labonte spokesman declined to comment.(SceneDaily)(7-28-2010)
From Jayski.

If they have sponsorship, I'm all for it!

 

[AdamS]

whoa... :err: that would be interesting

 

[Markfan]

Well, I'd rather see him in a full-time ride than not (He's got the most active consecutive starts, 1 ahead of Jeff Gordon), so I wouldn't mind, hard to see him in a Toyota though.

 

[4WideRacing]

That would be great!

 

[taz1458]

Why would it be hard to see him in a toyota? He drove Chevy forever, then drove a Ford for the #96. And if you remember he drove a toyota couple weeks ago. I'd love to see Bobby in a full-time gig again.

 

[instantCLASSIC]

JTG DAUGHERTY RACING ANNOUNCES BOBBY LABONTE
JTG Daugherty Racing announced today that 2000 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Bobby Labonte will take the reins as driver of the No. 47 Toyota Camry for the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 36-race schedule.

“JTG Daugherty Racing is a solid race team that has come close to winning races with Marcos Ambrose and I’m looking forward to developing our new partnership in 2011,” Labonte said. “The team is thriving and their technical alliance with MWR (Michael Waltrip Racing) is intact. It’s great to have next year already set in stone so when this season ends we can begin focusing on next year right away. Everything is in place and we have all the right ingredients to win races together.”

Labonte’s credentials speak for themselves. The Corpus Christi, Texas native is a 21-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winner with 26 pole awards, 114 top-five and 199 top-10 finishes. Team owners Jodi and Tad Geschickter and Brad Daugherty are pleased Labonte accepted the offer to drive the JTG Daugherty Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series entry as they enter their third full-time season of competition at Daytona International Speedway on February 13th.

“We are really happy Bobby has decided to join our team because I have known him for a long time and I have always admired him as a professional driver and as an individual,” Daugherty said. “He will do an outstanding job representing our products and team. He has gotten to a point in his career that he still has some things to accomplish. He is highly experienced with a championship on his résumé’ and we know he is capable of winning.”

“We would like to give a warm welcome to Bobby as he joins the JTG Daugherty Racing family,” said Jodi Geschickter. “We know he is an amazing fit for our sponsors and racing organization. The Labonte name has a history of excellence. Bobby is a proven winner, a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion and his character is solid. We share similar goals and views regarding the future. We are pleased that he has accepted the offer to join JTG Daugherty Racing in 2011.”

JTG Daugherty Racing’s partners concur.

“We are extremely excited to have Bobby coming on board,” said Grant LaMontagne, Senior Vice President and Chief Customer Officer of The Clorox Company, the longest running sponsor partner of JTG Daugherty Racing. “He’s a champion and a great fit for our brands. We expect to have a serious run for the Chase next season.”

This announcement follows Marcos Ambrose’s decision to part ways with JTG Daugherty Racing at the end of the year, which was confirmed on Tuesday by team officials.

jtgdaughertyracing.com - JTG DAUGHERTY RACING ANNOUNCES BOBBY LABONTE

 

[David24]

Didn't he also drive a Dodge in the #43?

 

[Cody88]

WooHoo! Congrats to Bobby. I'm glad they put a Veteran in it. I was hoping it would be Bobby or Dave Blaney, so my wish came true.

 

[labontefanboy]

YES! Glad Bobby will drive for them! And it appears that they have some sponsorship too!

 

[taz1458]

Big congrats to Bobby.....easily his best chance to win in a while.

 

[Cody88]

We are extremely excited to have Bobby coming on board,” said Grant LaMontagne, Senior Vice President and Chief Customer Officer of The Clorox Company, the longest running sponsor partner of JTG Daugherty Racing. “He’s a champion and a great fit for our brands. We expect to have a serious run for the Chase next season.”

We know for sure Clorox will be back, and I bet Bush's, Klenex, ETC will stick with Bobby. The only one is Little Debbie, They really like Marcos and have done a lot with him so I just wonder if they will follow him to RPM. Then again Marcos may have Stanley Tools, Air Force, Hunt Brothers, yada yada there next year.

 

[Shift]

Good for Bobby.

 

[4WideRacing]

Finally a team he can win with!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[DB2403]

That is awesome! I've always liked Bobby and it's so good to see him with a chance to win again.

 

[Rixster]

awesome, I've always been a fan of his (and Terry) and I'm glad he's getting another ride. Can't wait and I really hope the whole team has a great first season.

 

[MattSRD28]

Finally a team he can win with!!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah...a team that hasn't won a single Cup race in its history...

 

[Mike24]

Still, he'll have a much better shot at running well in the 47, than he has had with the 71, the 96, or the 09. I'll even throw his tenure in the 43 on that list.

MWR is improving, and this could potentially be Bobby's most competitive ride since he left Gibbs.

 

[John Poole III]

So happy for Bobby hope he does well.

 

[Michael James]

Yeah...a team that hasn't won a single Cup race in its history...

But pretty much on the same team as MWR, which has 2 wins.

 

[Brandon Howe]

Yeah...a team that hasn't won a single Cup race in its history...

Well that has alot to do with the driver though, MWR is a top team.