Editing Bobby Labonte (section)

===Cup Series===

====1995–2000====
[[Image:Bobby-Labonte-18-Car-Madagascar-Theme-JGR.jpg|thumb|right|Bobby Labonte's former JGR car on display at the [[Joe Gibbs Racing]] headquarters.]]
At the end of the 1994 season, Labonte departed to replace [[Dale Jarrett]] as the driver of the No.18 [[Interstate Batteries]] [[Chevrolet]] for [[Joe Gibbs Racing]]. Labonte would pick up his first career win in the Coca-Cola 600 in 1995, a win he would call later in 2018 the favorite of his career.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.moatf.com/episode-47-the-bobby-and-jen-show/|title=Episode #47 – The Bobby and Jen Show|date=2018-04-18|work=MOATF Podcast|access-date=2018-04-23|language=en-US}}</ref> He would also go on to sweep the races at Michigan and finish 10th in the standings.

In 1996, Labonte won the season-ending race at Atlanta, the same race where his brother Terry won the championship. The two took a victory lap together in what Labonte said was one of the "most emotional and memorable moments of [his] life". That year, he finished 11th in the points standings. In 1997, Gibbs switched car makes to a [[Pontiac Grand Prix]]. Labonte would go on to win the season-ending race at Atlanta for the second year in a row. He ended up 7th in the standings, his best finish at that point in his career.
[[File:BobbyLabonteRIR98.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Bobby Labonte at Richmond International Raceway in 1998.|Bobby Labonte at Richmond in 1998.]]
In 1998, Labonte won at both Atlanta and Talladega, as well as pole positions for both Daytona races, finishing 2nd to [[Dale Earnhardt]] in the 500. He finished the year in 6th in final points, improving by a position.

In 1999, Labonte won five Winston Cup races, the most he has ever won in a single season. He won at Dover in the spring, swept both Pocono races (he was the third to accomplish this particular sweep, after [[Bobby Allison]] in 1982 and [[Tim Richmond]] in 1986; since 1999, [[Jimmie Johnson]] in 2004, [[Denny Hamlin]] in 2006, and [[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]] in 2014 have also done this), the second Michigan race, and the season finale at Atlanta. However, during the season, he suffered a broken shoulder in an accident while qualifying for a Busch Series race at [[Darlington Raceway]], but raced in the Cup event two days later. Labonte started the race, but at the first caution was relieved by [[Matt Kenseth]]. He finished 2nd in the points standings to [[Dale Jarrett]], losing the championship by 201 points.

In 2000, Labonte won four races, the early-season race at Rockingham, the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis, the Southern 500 at Darlington, and the fall race at Charlotte. He led the point standings for 25 weeks straight after taking over at California, and never relinquished it on the way to winning the Winston Cup championship, finishing ahead of Earnhardt by 265 points, completing all but nine of the 10,167 laps that season, with four wins, 19 Top 5 finishes, 24 Top 10 finishes, three poles, an average finish of 7.4, and had zero times of finishing with a [[Did not finish]] (DNF). Labonte became the second driver in NASCAR history to win the championship and not score a single DNF and first since [[Cale Yarborough]] in 1977. Labonte is currently the last to accomplish this.

====2001–2005====
[[Image:EdwardsSadlerLabonte.jpg|thumb|right|Labonte No. 43 races to the end of pit lane in 2006]]
[[Image:BobbyLabonteCarApril2007.jpg|thumb|right|Labonte's 2007 car]]

Labonte began the 2001 season with a 7th-place finish in the Bud Shootout. At the [[2001 Daytona 500|Daytona 500]], he and his teammate [[Tony Stewart]] were two of the 18 drivers involved in a crash on lap 173. Labonte's hood broke off and got attached to Stewart's car, which flipped over twice. After getting out of his, Labonte was seen checking on Stewart to make sure he was okay. The accident was overshadowed by [[Dale Earnhardt]]'s [[Death of Dale Earnhardt|fatal crash]] on the last lap of the same race.

The following week at Rockingham, Labonte was narrowly beaten to the finish line by [[Steve Park]] in the rain-delayed Dura Lube 400. He did not have another Top 10 finish until the Virginia 500 at Martinsville, where he finished 8th. This was followed by a 5th-place finish in the Talladega 500. His next Top 10 was another 5th-place finish in the Coca-Cola 600. After less successful finishes at Dover and Michigan, Labonte had a second 8th-place finish at Pocono and a 7th-place finish at Sonoma. Following this was a third 5th-place finish in the Pepsi 400. At the end of July, Labonte won his first points race of the year in the Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono.

After the win, Labonte's next Top 10 were a 9th-place finish at Watkins Glen, an 8th-place finish at Bristol, a 3rd-place finish at Darlington, and a 6th-place finish at Richmond. He did not have back-to-back Top 10's again until the autumn races at Charlotte and Martinsville, where he finished 10th and 4th respectively.

In the fall at Talladega, Labonte started 34th. He managed to work his way up the field and took the lead on lap 107. He led for 23 laps before falling back in the pack. He retook the lead on lap 184 but was involved in a frightening last-lap crash. After leading three laps, Labonte was leading at the white flag on the outside lane. Going into turn 1, [[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]] overtook him in the lower groove, bringing [[Tony Stewart]] and [[Jeff Burton]] with him. Labonte moved up the track, trying to block [[Bobby Hamilton]], but coming onto the back straightaway, Hamilton tapped him from behind. Labonte made contact with [[Johnny Benson Jr.]] — sending that driver into the outside wall — and then spun, flipping over, and skidding partway down the track on his roof. This crash also collected [[Jason Leffler]], [[Sterling Marlin]], [[Robby Gordon]], [[Mike Wallace (racing driver)|Mike Wallace]], [[Ricky Craven]], [[Terry Labonte]], [[Buckshot Jones]], [[Ricky Rudd]], [[Ward Burton]], and more.

Labonte's next Top 10 was another 9th-place finish at Rockingham. After winning at Atlanta and a 3rd-place finish at the postponed New Hampshire 300, he finished 6th in the final points standings.

During 2001, Labonte won the [[IROC XXV]] title, becoming the 13th consecutive NASCAR driver to win the IROC championship.<ref>{{cite news|last=Pearce|first=Al|url=https://www.dailypress.com/2001/08/05/bobby-labonte-wins-iroc-finale/|title=Bobby Labonte Wins Iroc Finale|newspaper=[[Daily Press (Virginia)|Daily Press]]|date=August 5, 2001|access-date=December 30, 2014|archive-date=December 30, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141230222959/http://articles.dailypress.com/2001-08-05/sports/0108050112_1_richard-childress-racing-chevrolet-rich-bickle-kevin-harvick|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2002, Labonte only had one win, which was at Martinsville in the spring. He also drove a [[September 11 attacks|9/11]] Tribute car in 2002 with the phrase "[[Let's Roll]]" on the hood. It was his first career short-track win at Martinsville. He went on to finish 16th in the final points standings and failed to finish in the Top 10 for the first time since 1996, while his teammate Stewart went on to win the championship.

In 2003, Labonte rebounded and finished 8th in the standings after winning two races (Atlanta and Homestead [leading only the final lap]). Also, Labonte went on a tear during the spring with three straight 2nd-place finishes.

In 2004, Labonte did not win a race for the first time since 1994 (ten years later) and finished 12th in the points standings.

2005 saw much of the same. Labonte fell out of the Top 20 in points, and only had four Top 5's, one of which was a dramatic second at Lowe's Motor Speedway in the [[2005 Coca-Cola 600|Coca-Cola 600]]. He also went on to race some Truck Series events, which included a win at Martinsville. His win there made him join an elite group of drivers that have won in all three divisions at one track. In fact, with his win, he became the first driver to do so.

He also ran the [[24 Hours of Daytona]] road race, sharing a car with his brother Terry, [[Jan Magnussen]] and [[Bryan Herta]]. After the disappointing 2005 season, Labonte asked and was granted to be released from Joe Gibbs Racing, having spent the last eleven seasons there. Labonte joined [[Petty Enterprises]] to drive the famous No. 43.

====2006–2008====
[[Image:Bobby Labonte brings his car in after a crash during the Ford 300 (Homestead-Miami Speedway, 2007).jpg|thumb|left|Bobby Labonte brings his car in after a crash during the 2007 Ford 300 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway.]]
In his inaugural season in the famous No. 43 car, Labonte collected three Top 5's and eight Top 10's. His Top 5's included an impressive run at [[Martinsville Speedway|Martinsville]], where he finished 3rd after being in contention for the win much of the day. He ended up finishing 21st in the points standings, three spots better than he did two years before.

[[Image:Bobby Labonte 2008 Cheerios Dodge Charger.jpg|thumb|right|Labonte's 2008 Cup racecar]]

Labonte began the 2007 season with a 21st-place finish in the [[2007 Daytona 500|Daytona 500]], after avoiding the many accidents the race had. Labonte would end the year with no Top 5's and only three Top 10's. However, due to a more consistent season, he finished 18th in the points standings, a three-position improvement over 2006. In November, Labonte formed a full-service marketing agency, [http://www.blmarketing.net Breaking Limits], which is based in Huntersville, North Carolina.

In 2008, Labonte continued his contract with Petty Enterprises, but experienced a largely unsuccessful season, gathering only three Top 10's and no Top 5's on his way to finishing 21st in the Sprint Cup point standings. In December of that year, Labonte was released from [[Petty Enterprises]] while the team was negotiating a deal with a private equity firm that fell through, and Petty partnered with [[Gillett Evernham Motorsports]].

====2009====
On January 13, 2009, Labonte was confirmed to be the driver of the No. 96 [[Ford Fusion (Americas)|Ford Fusion]] for [[Hall of Fame Racing]], now in a partnership with [[Yates Racing]]. In the 2009 Spring Las Vegas race, the [[Shelby 427]], Labonte recorded his first Top 5 with Hall of Fame Racing and his best finish since he finished third in the Fall Martinsville race in 2006. However, that was his only Top 5 run for the year. With eleven races remaining in the 2009 season, Labonte was replaced for [[Erik Darnell]] for 7 of the final eleven races due to sponsorship problems with the No. 96. Labonte found a ride with TRG Motorsports and it's 71 for the 7 races he was out of the 96. In his first race at Atlanta, Labonte ran inside the Top 20 all night and scored an 18th-place finish. Two races later Labonte gave TRG its best qualifying effort with an 8th-place start, Labonte came home 22nd. At Talladega, Labonte finished 10th after, at one point, running 2nd in that race to Dale Earnhardt Jr.

====2010====
[[File:Bobby Labonte 71 Car.jpg|thumb|left|Labonte's car for the first half of the 2010 season]]
From February 2010 – June 2010, Labonte drove for [[The Racer's Group|TRG Motorsports]] and its No. 71.<ref name="Labonte with TRG">[http://www.racewayreport.com/drivers/news/bobby_labonte.html TRG Motorsports announces Bobby Labonte in No. 71 full-time in 2010]</ref> Even though TRG's 2009 owner points were not enough to make the field guaranteed for the first five races of 2010, Labonte's past championship provisional gave the team that to fall back on, in the case that Labonte's qualifying runs are not fast. For 2010, Labonte was also reunited with Doug Randolph as his crew chief. Randolph finished the 2007 season with Labonte in the No. 43 for Petty Enterprises, posting two of three of Labonte's Top 10 runs. TRG also announced an alliance with Richard Childress Racing for 2010.<ref name="TRG RCR alliance">[http://www.racewayreport.com/news/trg_motorsports.html TRG Motorsports forms alliance with RCR]</ref> RCR shared technology and equipment with TRG for the season. They also allied with [[Stewart Haas Racing]], as [[Tony Stewart]] will provide a pit crew to the team.

In his first race in the TRG, Labonte finished 21st in the [[Daytona 500]] after he started 42nd with a champions provisional. For much of the race, Labonte was in the Top 25. He would end up fading back over the next few races, as he and the team would struggle for consistency. On the May 16th Dover race, due to lack of sponsorship, Labonte and the 71 team parked the car after 66 laps. Arguably, some people might say that this season is the worst of his full-time career, as he only had two Top 20 finishes in 2010 one at the [[Daytona 500]] and one at the [[Infineon Raceway]] road course event.

On June 22, 2010, it was announced that Labonte would be leaving the No. 71 due to the team being unable to secure sponsorship. On June 23, Labonte was hired to drive car No. 7 for [[Robby Gordon Motorsports]] at New Hampshire in a one-race deal.<ref name="Labonte leaving TRG">Labonte also drove the #09 car for [[Phoenix Racing (NASCAR team)|Phoenix Racing]] at Daytona and Chicago. [http://www.scenedaily.com/news/articles/sprintcupseries/Sources_Bobby_Labonte_plans_to_leave_TRG_Motorsports_this_week.html Labonte Leaving TRG] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626111630/http://www.scenedaily.com/news/articles/sprintcupseries/Sources_Bobby_Labonte_plans_to_leave_TRG_Motorsports_this_week.html |date=2010-06-26 }}</ref>

C&J Energy Services entered into a partnership with Phoenix Racing<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-cup/news/bobby-labonte-sponsor-news-2010-09-28/|title=Bobby Labonte sponsor news 2010-09-28|work=Motorsport.com|access-date=2018-03-17|language=en|archive-date=2018-03-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180317231940/https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-cup/news/bobby-labonte-sponsor-news-2010-09-28/|url-status=dead}}</ref> which allowed Labonte to be hired to take over the No. 09 car beginning at Daytona and Labonte split the rest of the 2010 season between Phoenix Racing and TRG Motorsports. On October 11, Stavola-Labonte Racing hired Labonte to drive its No. 10 car at Charlotte and Texas in a two-race deal. The team is co-owned by Bobby's older brother Terry. Despite bouncing around, Labonte competed in every race for the 2010 season.

====2011–2012====
[[File:Bobby Labonte Las Vegas 2012.jpg|thumb|Labonte's No. 47 car during the [[2012 Kobalt Tools 400]]]]
Labonte replaced [[Marcos Ambrose]] as the full-time driver of the No. 47 [[JTG Daugherty Racing]] [[Toyota Camry]], with support from [[Michael Waltrip Racing]]. He finished 4th in the [[Daytona 500]], earning Labonte his 200th career Top 10 finish in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Earning only one more Top 10 finish so far in the season. [[JTG Daugherty Racing]] and [[Michael Waltrip Racing]] received a penalty for violating sections 12-1, 12-4-J, and 20-3.2.1A. Crew Chief Frankie Kerr was fined $50,000 and was suspended from 4 NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship events, and suspended from NASCAR until November, 23. The same penalty was for [[Michael Waltrip Racing]] and the car chief for each team. The owners of the numbers 47 (Tad Geschickter); 56 (Michael Waltrip); and 00 (Rob Kauffman); were penalized 25 owner points. The drivers were also penalized 25 driver points.

For the 2012 season, Labonte returned to the No. 47 car with most of the sponsors returning also. JTG Daugherty Racing also announced they will no longer operate out of the [[Michael Waltrip Racing]] shop. [[Todd Berrier]] took over the role as the crew chief. The crew chief at the time, [[Frank Kerr (NASCAR)|Frank Kerr]], moved to the position of shop foreman.

====2013–2016====
Labonte ran in the 47 for the entire season until the [[2013 Quicken Loans 400]] at [[Michigan International Speedway]], in which he ran the No. 51 for [[Phoenix Racing (NASCAR team)|Phoenix Racing]]. Labonte ran at [[Sonoma Raceway]] in the 47, but was subsequently replaced by [[A. J. Allmendinger]] in the 47 for selected races starting at the [[2013 Quaker State 400]] at [[Kentucky Speedway]], ending Labonte's streak of consecutive starts at 704. The streak was second only to [[Jeff Gordon]]'s.<ref>{{cite web|last=Caraviello|first=David|url=http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/2013/06/25/labontes-consecutive-start-streak-to-end.html|title=Labonte's consecutive start streak to end|publisher=[[NASCAR]]|date=2013-06-25|access-date=2013-06-25}}</ref> Later in the year Labonte suffered broken ribs in a cycling accident, forcing him to miss three races, starting with the [[2013 AdvoCare 500 (Atlanta)|AdvoCare 500]] at [[Atlanta Motor Speedway|Atlanta]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nascar/2013/08/28/bobby-labonte-injury-atlanta-mike-bliss-bike-broken-ribs/2724463/|title=Bobby Labonte breaks ribs in bike crash, will miss race|last=Gluck|first=Jeff|date=August 28, 2013|work=[[USA Today]]|access-date=2013-08-28}}</ref>

His last race with JTG Daughtery was at [[Phoenix International Raceway]] in November 2013; released afterwards, in December 2013 he announced that he would be running part-time in the [[2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series]] in a second car for [[HScott Motorsports]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nascar/2013/12/17/daytona-500-2014-bobby-labonte-phoenix-racing/4055161/|title=2014 Daytona 500: Bobby Labonte to drive for Phoenix Racing|last=Gluck|first=Jeff|date=December 17, 2013|work=[[USA Today]]|access-date=2013-12-17|location=McLean, VA}}</ref> During practice for the [[2014 Daytona 500]] Labonte blew an engine, and although he qualified for his 22nd consecutive 500,<ref>{{cite web|last=Bianchi|first=Jordan|url=https://www.sbnation.com/nascar/2014/2/21/5432580/daytona-500-2014-budweiser-duel-qualify-terry-bobby-labonte-parker-kligerman-cole-whitt|title=2014 Daytona 500: Mixed emotions as some drivers make Daytona 500, others don't|publisher=[[SB Nation]]|date=February 21, 2014|access-date=2014-03-10}}</ref> he was relegated to the back of the starting grid.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gluck|first=Jeff|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nascar/2014/02/22/daytona-500-2014-starting-lineup-grid/5727777/|title=2014 Daytona 500 lineup: Nine cars will start at rear|newspaper=[[USA Today]]|date=February 22, 2014|access-date=2014-03-10}}</ref> Labonte finished the race in 15th.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://racing-reference.info/race/2014_Daytona_500/W|title=2014 Daytona 500|work=Racing-Reference|access-date=2014-03-10}}</ref>
[[File:Bobby Labonte 32 Go Fas Racing Ford.jpg|thumb|left|Labonte competed part-time for [[Go FAS Racing]] in 2015 and 2016.]]
A deal to run for [[James Finch]] in additional races fell through, thus Labonte did not make another start for the first half of the season. Instead, he tested cars for Richard Childress Racing.  At the summer Daytona race, he drove the No. 33 RCR Chevrolet that [[Brian Scott]] had driven to the pole at Talladega, running under the [[Circle Sport]] banner.  Labonte qualified 4th and contended for the lead at the beginning of the race, but was caught up in the Big One, finishing 26th. [[Tommy Baldwin Racing]] would field the No. 37 car with Accell Construction as the sponsor for Labonte at Indianapolis.

In December 2014, Labonte announced that he would drive for [[Go FAS Racing]] on the restrictor-plate tracks in 2015, taking over for his brother [[Terry Labonte|Terry]] who retired after the [[2014 GEICO 500]]. He finished 24th at the [[2015 Daytona 500]]. In the spring Talladega race, Labonte finished 27th. The [[2015 Coke Zero 400]] did not go well for Labonte, as he was caught up in an early crash caused by [[David Gilliland]] and finished 43rd. For the Fall Talladega race, he finished 23rd, his best finish of the season. In 2016, Labonte received the sponsorship of Bombardier Recreational Products and Cyclops Gear<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-cup/news/can-am-to-back-jeffrey-earnhardt-and-bobby-labonte-in-2016/|title=Can-Am to back Jeffrey Earnhardt and Bobby Labonte in 2016|work=Motorsport.com|access-date=2018-03-17|language=en}}</ref> allowing him to run the four restrictor-plate races for Go FAS Racing.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sportingnews.com/nascar-news/4655688-jeffrey-earnhardt-dale-rookie-2016-sprint-cup-season-bobby-labonte-nascar|title=Jeffrey Earnhardt, Bobby Labonte join forces with Ford for 2016 Cup season|last=Rodgers|first=Joe|date=September 19, 2015|work=[[Sporting News]]|access-date=2015-12-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151224104318/http://www.sportingnews.com/nascar-news/4655688-jeffrey-earnhardt-dale-rookie-2016-sprint-cup-season-bobby-labonte-nascar|archive-date=December 24, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>  For the Daytona 500, Labonte would finish 31st. For Talladega, Labonte would finish 19th. Coming back to Daytona, Labonte would finish 24th. Coming back to Talladega, Labonte would finish 31st. Following the 2016 season, it was announced that Labonte would not return to Go FAS.