Team: Joe Gibbs Racing
Car/sponsor/make: No. 18 Interstate Batteries Pontiac
| |  |
| | Labonte |
|
STATS
|
Year
|
Rank
|
Wins
|
Top 5
|
Top 10
|
Money
|
Best finish
|
|
2001
|
6
|
2
|
9
|
20
|
$4,139,850
|
1st, Twice
|
|
Career
|
|
18
|
84
|
142
|
$25,306,096
|
1st, 18 times
|
2001 recap
The good: After a miserable start, Labonte was like a freight train in the
second-half of the season, methodically winding his way up the Winston Cup
standings mountain until he ended in sixth-place. Because of his bad start,
many critics and observers wrote Labonte off for the remainder of 2001, but
the veteran driver showed the mettle and tenacity to bounce back, in much the
same fashion that helped him win the 2000 Winston Cup championship.
Season highlight: While his sixth-place finish in the final standings was
the big story for Labonte in 2001, one particular race stands out in terms of
performance. In the fall race at Atlanta (the second-to-last event of the
season), Labonte had his worst qualifying effort of 2001, starting 39th. But
in much the same way as he rode a rail upward in the standings in the
second-half of the season, Labonte and crew chief Jimmy Makar got their
Pontiac hooked up to work almost flawlessly, allowing Labonte to click off 38
spots and eventually finish with his second victory of the season. That
finish was the crowning achievement of the season for Labonte,
putting the final touch on his spectacular comeback through the rest of the
pack.
The bad: Labonte came into 2001 bound and determined to repeat as Winston Cup
champion. But he fell behind the eight ball quickly with finishes of 40th,
29th, 33rd and 42nd in four of the season's first seven races. Had he not
gotten off to such a rough start, he likely would have finished higher in the
final standings and could have given eventual champ Jeff Gordon a more heated
challenge.
Season lowlight: Without question, Labonte's hopes to defend his Winston
Cup title were quickly hammered when he started 37th and finished an even
more disappointing 40th due to an accident in the season-opening Daytona 500.
After climbing from 39th-place in the standings after Daytona to 19th after
the first six races, the hammer slammed down on Labonte again at Texas. He
started on the outside pole, only to finish horribly in 42nd-place when the
engine in his car failed after 149 laps of the 334-lap event. That
disappointing finish dropped him back down in the standings to 25th-place.
|  |
| Labonte had some tough luck in 2001. |
Key stat: After an up-and-down campaign, things finally came together for
Labonte near the end of the season. For the first time all season, he was
able in the campaign's last four races to put together a string of four
consecutive top-10 finishes, including his win at Atlanta (other finishes
were 9th at Phoenix, 8th at Homestead-Miami and 3rd in the rescheduled season
finale at New Hampshire).
2002 outlook
What needs to be done: Little has to be changed in the Gibbs-Labonte-Makar
camp for the upcoming season. All that's needed is a bit more consistency and
racing luck, both of which were in short supply for much of 2001. While
Pontiac backers say the design of their car puts their teams at competitive
disadvantages on the Winston Cup circuit, Labonte's veteran experience helps
strengthen some of the car body's shortfalls. The biggest key for the No. 18
team is to have a good start at Daytona and follow that up on a consistent
basis in the ensuing races.
Prediction: If Lady Luck doesn't turn her shoulder to Labonte again, he has
as strong a chance as any driver to win the Winston Cup title in 2002. But if
he falls short of the championship, Labonte still will likely finish in the
top-5.
Your take
Can Labonte be consistent enough all season to challenge for the championship? Check out your thoughts.
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