Texas Speedzone - LABONTE INDUCTED INTO TEXAS MOTORSPORTS HALL OF FAME

LABONTE INDUCTED INTO TEXAS MOTORSPORTS HALL OF FAME - 4/14/2005

Terry Labonte has been giving Texas fans something to cheer about for more than 25 years. Wednesday night, more than 700 attended the Texas Motorsports Hall of Fame Banquet at The Speedway Club at Texas Motor Speedway to cheer the man they call, “Texas Terry”. Labonte, and the late Lee Shepherd, were inducted last night, joining inaugural Hall of Fame members Johnny Rutherford and A.J. Foyt.

Labonte, who is driving a part-time schedule in 2005 and 2006, will be in the No. 44 Kellogg’s Chevrolet for Sunday’s Samsung/RadioShack 500. He was presented for induction to the Hall of Fame last night by his son, Justin, who is in the #44 Coast Guard Chevrolet for Saturday’s O’Reilly 300 Busch Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.

Labonte has won on short tracks, intermediate tracks, superspeedways and road courses in his 26-year NASCAR career and won the 1984 and 1996 Cup Championships.

Shepherd was one of the best drag racers ever to compete in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) and International Hot Rod Association (IHRA), winning four straight NHRA titles (1981-84) before dying tragically in a testing accident in 1985. His long time friend and business partner, David Reher of Reher-Morrison Racing in Arlington, Texas, accepted the award on Shepherd’s behalf.

Speedway Motorsports, Inc., chairman Bruton Smith presented the Bruton Smith Legends award to Lloyd Ruby of Wichita Falls, TX, who drove open-wheel cars for 30 years. Texas Motor Speedway president Eddie Gossage awarded the Texas Motor Speedway Racer of the Year to Indy Racing League IndyCar Series champion Tony Kanaan, who won last June’s Bombardier Learjet 500k at Texas. NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series driver Michael Waltrip presented Kyle and Pattie Petty with the Texas Motorsports Hall of Fame Sportsmanship Award. The Pettys have long been known for their contribution of time and resources to charity, especially The Victory Junction Gang. The Texas Motorsports Hall of Fame Vision Award was given to Dr. Dean Sicking for his work in developing the SAFER barrier walls in motorsports.

The Texas Motorsports Hall of Fame benefits the children of Happy Hill Farm in Granbury, Texas, a residential school for at-risk children, in association with Speedway Children’s Charities.