Editing Bobby Labonte (section)

====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.