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Chip Ganassi Racing
Chip Ganassi Racing
Team information
Owners As SABCO Racing:
Felix Sabates (1989-2000)
As Chip Ganassi Racing:
Felix Sabates (2001-2020)
Chip Ganassi (2001-2021)
Teresa Earnhardt (2009-2013)
(Briefly as Earnhardt Ganassi Racing)
Base Concord, North Carolina
Series Cup Series (1989-2021)
Xfinity Series (1995-2018)
Truck Series (1996)
Formed 1989 (as SABCO Racing by
Felix Sabates)
Closed 2021
Team history SABCO Racing
(1989-2000)
Chip Ganassi Racing with
Felix Sabates

(2001-2008, 2014-2021)
Earnhardt Ganassi Racing (2009-2013)
Team career
Debut Cup Series:
1989 Motorcraft Quality Parts 500
(as SABCO Racing)
Xfinity Series:
1995 Goody's 300
(as SABCO Racing)
Truck Series:
1996 Florida Dodge Dealers 400
(as SABCO Racing)
Last race Cup Series:
2021 Cup Series Championship Race
(as CGR)
Xfinity Series:
2018 Ford Ecoboost 300
(as CGR)
Truck Series:
1996 Carqust 420K
(as SABCO Racing)
First win Cup Series:
1990 GM Goodwrench 500
(as SABCO Racing)
Xfinity Series:
2000 Cheez-It 250
(as SABCO Racing)
Team statistics
Championships: 0
Total Race wins: Cup Series: 22
7 (as SABCO)
15 (as CGR)
Xfinity Series: 20
1 (as SABCO)
21 (as CGR)
External links:
Team stats (as Chip Ganassi Racing)
Team stats (as SABCO Racing)
Succeeded by: ->
Trackhouse Racing

Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates was an American stock car racing team owned by Chip Ganassi and Felix Sabates who competed in the NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series. The team was founded in 1989 by Felix Sabates as SABCO Racing. In 2001 Ganassi purchased a 80% portion of the team, and was rebranded Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sebates. In June 2021, Ganassi sold the team to Trackhouse Racing.

The team is based in Concord, North Carolina, which is a suburb of Charlotte.

NASCAR[]

In NASCAR Cup series they field the #1 Monster Energy Chevrolet Camaro driven by Kurt Busch and the #42 CreditOne Chevrolet Camaro driven by Kyle Larson. The NASCAR operation was formed in 1989 by Felix Sabates, a Cuban immigrant who was a self-made millionaire in products such as Teddy Ruxpin. The team was known as Team SABCO or SABCO Racing. In 2001, Ganassi bought 80% of the ownership interest in the team, the same year the team switched from Chevy to Dodge. The team operated under the name Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabetes. In 2009, CGR merged with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. to form Earnhardt Ganassi Racing. EGR acquired the #1 and #8 teams from DEI while it kept the #42 from CGR. The team also switched from Dodge back to Chevy. In 2014, Earnhardt's name was removed from the team and reverted back to the old CGR name.

Car #1 history[]

Dale Earnhardt, Inc. debuted in Winston Cup in 1996 as the #14 Racing for Kids Chevrolet, driven by Robby Gordon at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Jeff Green drove the car in two more races that year. The next year, Busch Series standout Steve Park drove the car in five races with the Burger King sponsorship. In 1998, the team switched numbers with car owner Richard Jackson with the car changing from #14 to #1, and receiving sponsorship from Pennzoil and Park making a bid for NASCAR Rookie of the Year honors. The team got off to a bumpy start after Park failed to qualify at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in just the third race of the year. The next week, Park broke his leg at a testing accident at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Two weeks later, the team hired three-time champion Darrell Waltrip to pilot the car while Park recovered from his injuries. Waltrip posted two top ten finishes in the car until Park made his return at the Brickyard 400, where he finished 35th following a crash. He posted two eleventh-place finishes and finished 42nd in points that year.

Park fared better the next year, posting 5 top 10 finishes and finishing 14th in points. In 2000, Park won his first two Bud Pole awards, and won his first race at his home track at Watkins Glen International Raceway. He finished 11th year in points. The race after Earnhardt's death in 2001, Park beat Bobby Labonte in a photo finish at North Carolina Speedway. But his career stalled when competing in a Busch Series race at Darlington Speedway, his steering wheel became disconnected from the steering column during a caution flag period and his car veered immediately left and was slammed into by the quicker-moving vehicle of Larry Foyt. Kenny Wallace, who had lost his ride earlier in the season, took over the #1 for the rest of the season and tied his career best finish with a second place run at North Carolina before the season was out.

Wallace started the 2002 Winston Cup season in the #1 but was replaced by Park at Darlington after he recovered enough to return to competition. However, the accident was still affecting Park and he struggled to regain his form. Midway through 2003, in an effective trade with Richard Childress Racing, Park and the driver of RCR's #30 AOL Chevrolet, Jeff Green, switched rides. However, Green struggled just as much as Park did and left for Petty Enterprises to drive the #43 after twelve races, with John Andretti finishing the season in the #1. Pennzoil left the team after the 2003 season, and the #1 scaled back to part-time status with Andretti driving.

The team ran a part-time schedule in 2005 with Martin Truex Jr. driving a Bass Pro Shops-sponsored car, and moved back to full time status in 2006. On June 4, 2007, Truex scored his first career NEXTEL Cup victory in the #1 car at Dover International Speedway, in a COT race. Truex also made the Chase for the Nextel Cup that year, DEI's only representative and (to date) the last DEI car to qualify for the Chase. He did not return to Victory Lane in 2008 and failed to make the chase. At the end of 2009, Truex left the team for Michael Waltrip Racing to drive the #56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota Camry. He was replaced by Jamie McMurray, who was let go after Roush Fenway Racing downsized to four cars and who had driven for the Ganassi organization from 2002 until 2005, winning his first Cup race with the team as a substitute driver.

McMurray won the 2010 Daytona 500 for EGR in his first race in the #1 car. It was the second time that the #1 had visited victory lane after Truex's win, and the first win for a Earnhardt or Ganassi team car since Juan Pablo Montoya won the Toyota/Save Mart 350 three weeks after Truex took the win at Dover.

Car #39 history[]

The 39 car is often a research and development car for CGN. It debuted in 2003 at Watkins Glen with Scott Pruett driving, starting 28th and finishing 2nd. Pruett and the car reappeared in 2004 and 2005 at Infineon, where Pruett finished 3rd and 31st, respectively. He also attempted The Glen, but he failed to qualify both years. In 2005, former champion Bill Elliott drove the car with Coors sponsorship at the Bud Shootout when his regular ride was unavailable. David Stremme then drove seven races in preparation for his bid in 2006 for NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Rookie of the Year. Casey Mears was originally going to drive this car full-time in this season with sponsorship from Home123, but it was later announced he would drive the 42 car instead. Home123 has terminated its contract with CGN, and this car will most likely continue to be used R&D purposes only.

Car #40 history[]

The 40 car debuted in 1993 as the 2nd car in the SABCO stable. It had sponsorship from Dirt Devil and was piloted by rookie driver Kenny Wallace. After Wallace finished 3rd behind Bobby Labonte and Jeff Gordon in the Rookie of the Year standings, he left for other opportunities. Bobby Hamilton drove the car the next season with sponsorship from Kendall Motor Oil, during which the #40 car was bought by Dick Brooks. Hamilton finished 23rd in points that year. The 1995 season saw multiple drivers such as Rich Bickle, Greg Sacks, and Shane Hall pilot the car. But at the end of the year, Brooks closed up shop and sold the team back to Sabates. The team came back in 1996 with First Union sponsoring the car and Greg Sacks driving. Returning full-time the next year, rookie driver Robby Gordon drove and Coors Light paying the bills, things looked promising when Gordon won the pole at the spring Atlanta race, but Gordon, an open-wheel ace, suffered burns at the Indianapolis 500. By the time he came back, the damage was done, and despite picking up a top-5 at Watkins Glen, Gordon was released. Sacks returned to finish out the year.

For 1998, Sabates chose a more experienced driver in 2-time Daytona 500 winner Sterling Marlin. But for a brief time, the plan backfired. Marlin DNQ-d at the spring Atlanta race, one year after the team won the pole position there, marking the first time since 1986 Marlin missed a Winston Cup race. At the end of the year, Marlin had 6 top-10's and was 18th in points. Marlin showed a brief insurgence in 1999 when he won the pole at Pocono. But the mediocrity continued, and it looked like Marlin's best days were behind him. In 2001, the car got a new silver-red paint scheme, a manufacturer switch to Dodge, a new crew chief in Lee McCall, and a new owner in Ganassi. Marlin made an impression by winning his qualifying race for the Daytona 500, but the euphoria soon vaporized. On the last lap of the 500, Marlin's car bumped into Dale Earnhardt, causing the 7-time champion to lose control and crash into the wall, killing him. Out of anger and grief, fans sent hate mail and death threats to Marlin and his wife, claiming him responsible for Earnhardt's death. They only ceased when Earnhardt's drivers, his son Dale Jr. and Michael Waltrip publicly defended Marlin. Marlin was able to rise above the controversy, and gave Dodge its first win since its return to NASCAR at Michigan, and finished 3rd in points. Marlin led the points standings for most of 2002, but broke his neck at Kansas Speedway, ending his season. Jamie McMurray, scheduled to drive the #42 car the following season, filled in for Marlin. At Lowe's Motor Speedway, McMurray beat out Bobby Labonte to win his first race in just his second Nextel Cup start. The emotional victory was capped off with a phone call from Marlin through the television network congratulating McMurray on his victory Since then, Marlin has not won a race, and soon-to-be rookie David Stremme will replace Marlin in 2006. This move outraged some fans, since Coors and Ganassi have both stated that the decision was partly due to Coors attempting to target the younger demographic. Stremme disappointed only scoring a handful of top 10s in 2006 and 2007 and has been dropped in favor of current IRL Series Champ Dario Franchitti.

After struggling to catch sponsors, on July 1, 2008, Chip Ganassi Racing announced the closing of the #40, due to lack of sponsorship and funding, and that the #40 would not finish the rest of the 2008 season.

Car #41 history[]

The #41 car is the original part of Ganassi's NASCAR stable. It debuted in 1989 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, as the #42 PEAK Chevy driven by Kyle Petty, who finished 4th. The car ran on and off for the rest of the year before moving to full-time status in 1990. Petty won one race and finished 11th in points that year. Petty was running strong in 1991 with new sponsorship from Mello Yello, before he broke his leg in an accident at Talladega Superspeedway. He was replaced by Bobby Hillin, Jr., Tommy Kendall, and Kenny Wallace while he recovered. Petty didn't seem to miss a beat, as he finished 5th in points in both 1992 and 1993.

After that, his career began to run out of steam, as began DNQ-ing and losing consistency. He won his final race in 1995 at Dover, the first year the car had Coors Light sponsoring the car. In 1996, Petty was temporarily replaced by Jim Sauter to recover from more injuries. After that year, Petty and Sabates split and Coors moved to the #40 car. Joe Nemechek and BellSouth came onboard. The year got off to a rocky start, when Nemechek DNQ'd at the Daytona 500, but was able to get in on a car bought from Phil Barkdoll. After losing his brother John in an accident Homestead-Miami Speedway(and missing Darlington to attend his funeral, he was replaced by Phil Parsons in the meantime), Nemechek developed a prowess for qualifying, garnering two pole positions and the nickname "Front Row Joe." Nemechek finished a then-career best 26th in points in 1998, before hitting paydirt the following season. Weeks after announcing that they would not race together in 2000, Nemechek won his first Winston Cup race at New Hampshire International Speedway, and won two more pole positions.

In 2000 Kenny Irwin Jr. took over. He was just adjusting to his new team when tragically, he was killed in a practice accident at New Hampshire, the first race since the team won there the previous year. The team took one week off and returned as #01 driven by Ted Musgrave. For 2001, the BellSouth brand Cingular became the sponsor and rookie driver Jason Leffler handling the driving chores. Leffler struggled despite winning a pole at the inaugural race at Kansas Speedway, and he was released at the end of the season. When Cingular moved to the 31 car, Target became the sponsor, the number was changed to #41, and Jimmy Spencer was tabbed to replace Leffler. Spencer DNQ'd for the Daytona 500, and was replaced by Scott Pruett at Watkins Glen, then was released. To the surprise of many, Casey Mears, an inexperience and unheralded Busch Series driver was hired to drive the car. After struggling initially, he has come along steadily in Nextel Cup. Reed Sorenson has driven this car ever since.

Car #42 history[]

What is now the #42 car began as the #87 NEMCO Motorsports car owned and driven by Joe Nemechek. After he signed with SABCO in 1996, Sabates bought the majority ownership of the team, which debuted at the 1997 Daytona 500 as the #46 First Union Chevy driven by Wally Dallenbach Jr.. After skipping several races, the team moved to full-time racing. Dallenbach competed in 22 races and finished 41st in points. He only raced in four races in 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Series before he was replaced by a rotation of drivers including Jeff Green, Morgan Shepherd, and Tommy Kendall. After First Union stopped their backing at the end of the season, the team was scheduled to close down, but instead it changed its number to #01 and served as the team's research and development car. Green, Steve Grissom, and Ron Hornaday drove the car on a limited schedule in 1999.

The team reappeared at Sears Point in 2001 as car #04 when Jason Leffler drove the car while Dorsey Schroeder piloted his regular ride; Leffler did not qualify for the race. The car came back as #42 in 2002 at Watkins Glen when Jimmy Spencer did not qualify while Scott Pruett drove his normal car. The car was scheduled to run seven races with Jamie McMurray driving, but when McMurray filled in for Sterling Marlin, the team didn't run until 2003. When it raced full-time for the first time in 2003, McMurray drove the car with Texaco/Havoline as the sponsor. Despite winning Rookie of the Year honors, McMurray left after the 2005 season to replace Kurt Busch at Roush Racing. Casey Mears moved up to take his place during the 2006 season, but Mears also decided to leave Ganassi, replacing Brian Vickers at Hendrick Motorsports. In July 2006, it was announced that racer Juan Pablo Montoya would replace Mears in the #42. Montoya won his first career Nextel Cup race at Infineon Raceway in the Toyota/Save Mart 350, ending a near five year victory drought the Chip Ganassi Racing organization had in the NEXTEL Cup Series (since the 2002 UAW-GM Quality 500, which was won by Jamie McMurray). He ended the year 20th in points and won Rookie of the Year.

After Montoya failed to return to victory lane and dropped to 25th in points despite some good results and a second place in the Aaron's 499 in 2008, Texaco/Havoline left the team, and the Target Corporation was named the new sponsor for 2009. Montoya had his best season, with seven top 5, eighteen top 10 and 2 poles. He qualified for the Chase for the Cup and finished eighth in the overall standings.

External links[]

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