2006-2008
In his inaugural season in the #43, Labonte collected 3 top-5's and 8 top-10s. His top-5s included an impressive run at the Martinsville Speedway where he finished 3rd after being in contention for the win much of the day. He ended up finishing 21st in the points standings, three spots better than in 2005.
Bobby began the 2007 season with a 21st place finish in the Daytona 500, after avoiding the many accidents the race had. Bobby won the Busch Series race at Talladega Speedway in April 2007, edging Tony Stewart to the line in a thrilling finish. This was his first Busch Series win since 1998. Bobby would end the year with no top-fives and only three top-ten finishes, but due to a more consistent season, he finished in 18th place in the standings, a three-position improvement over 2006.
In the off season following the 2007 season, Labonte agreed to a 15 race contract to drive the # 21 chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for 2008. RCR's No. 21 team earned six victories in 2007 with driver Kevin Harvick, and has earned two of the organization's four series championships. In November 2007, Labonte formed a full-service marketing agency, Breaking Limits, which is based in Huntersville, North Carolina.
In 2008, Labonte continued his contract with Petty Enterprises, but experienced a largely unsuccessful season, gathering only three top-tens and no top-fives on his way to finishing 21st in the Sprint Cup standings. In December of that year, Labonte was released from Petty Enterprises while the team was negotiating with Gillett Evernham Motorsports about a possible merger.
Read more about this topic: Bobby Labonte