Bobby Labonte - 1990-1994

1990-1994

By 1990, Labonte had finally earned enough money to race in the Busch Series full-time. He founded his own team, and drove a Slim Jim-sponsored #44 Oldsmobile. He was successful, winning two poles (both at Bristol Motor Speedway), scoring six top-5s, and ten top-10s. He ended up finishing fourth in the standings and was also voted the Busch Series' "Most Popular Driver".

Next season, he continued his second-division success by winning the NASCAR Busch Series championship with two wins, 10 top-five and 21 top-10 finishes. He also won his first Busch Series race, at Bristol, then won again at O'Reilly Raceway Park in August. In addition to his Busch Series schedule, he made two Winston Cup starts in a Bobby Labonte Racing car at Dover International Speedway and Michigan International Speedway, finishing 34th and 38th, respectively.

The following season, 1992, he continued racing in the Busch Series. His season was a successful one, and he ended up winning three races (at Lanier, Hickory, and Martinsville respectively), but lost the Busch championship to Joe Nemechek by three points. That championship finish is, to date, the second closest finish in the history of NASCAR's top three series (behind the tiebreaker between Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards in the Sprint Cup Series in 2011).

In 1993, Labonte was called up by Bill Davis Racing to drive in the Winston Cup Series. He signed a contract to drive the #22 Maxwell House Ford Thunderbird. In his rookie season, he won his first pole at Richmond International Raceway, collected one top-five and two top-tens, and finished 19th in points. He was also second place behind Jeff Gordon for Rookie of the Year honors. He also competed in two Busch Series races, winning a pole and finishing 2nd and 24th respectively. Also, Labonte continued to operate his main Busch Series team, hiring David Green to drive for him. Green finished third in points for Bobby Labonte Racing.

The next season, 1994, Labonte achieved his second major success as a car owner when his Busch Series driver, David Green, won the championship. It was the second championship, and fifth top-five points finish in five years for Bobby Labonte Racing. He also ran in the Busch Series himself, making 12 starts and earning a victory at Michigan in August. In addition to his Busch Series exploits, Bobby continued running full-time in the Winston Cup series for Bill Davis Racing. He collected one top-5 and two top-10s and finished 21st in the standings, just missing out on the top 20 because of Todd Bodine's two-position points standings gain in the final race of the season.