Jimmie Johnson now majority owner of Legacy Motor Club
Jimmie Johnson is now the majority owner of Legacy Motor Club after the organization added a minority stakeholder.
Legacy Motor Club announced Monday that Knighthead Capital Management has acquired a minority stake in the NASCAR team.
Jimmie Johnson to run two-race NASCAR Cup schedule in 2025
Jimmie Johnson plans to compete in the Daytona 500 and Coca-Cola 600 this season.
Dustin Long,
Dustin Long,
Legacy Motor Club also announced that Maury Gallagher is taking a step back from his day-to-day duties to assume an ambassador role with the organization.
Gallagher and Johnson partnered to form Legacy Motor Club ahead of the 2023 season.
'I really have to thank Maury Gallagher for giving me the opportunity within the ownership space," Johnson said in a statement from the team. "He has been an outstanding partner, mentor and friend and I'm grateful we had the opportunity to work together, I've learned so much from him.
"As his professional career takes a different path, he can worry less about the daily team owner things and focus more on family and enjoying life.'
Weather forecast for NASCAR Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium
Here is a look at the early forecast for the Feb. 1-2 weekend event in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Dustin Long,
Dustin Long,
On the partnership with Knighthead Capital Management, Johnson said: "The partnership with Knighthead is a game-changer for Legacy MC. Their expertise in navigating complex investment opportunities and success in sports will provide Legacy MC with the resources and guidance needed to push for championships and solidify our place in NASCAR for years to come.
"Having Knighthead on board will not only strengthen our racing efforts but also enhance the fan experience and expand our reach in the global motorsports ecosystem, not limited to NASCAR.'
Knighthead Capital Management, founded in 2008, is an investment firm whose portfolio includes investments in Hertz, JOTA Racing, Singer Vehicle Design, Revology Cars, and Birmingham City Football Club.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
Ram to enter trucks in 2026 with possible future move to Cup for Dodge
BROOKLYN, Mich. — Dodge parent company Stellantis will enter NASCAR racing in 2026 with its Ram brand competing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with an eye toward going Cup racing in the years beyond. Whether that's 2027 or later — 2027 is possible but would be an aggressive timeline — remains to be seen as the announcement Sunday focused primarily on the truck, a much easier lift than going Cup racing. With all trucks in the series using an Ilmor engine and several common body elements, Ram just needed to design a nose, a hood, front fenders and a tail for its racing vehicle. Ram did not announce who will drive its trucks nor the teams that will field its trucks. Ram CEO Tim Kinuskis said he hopes to have somewhere between four and six trucks for the 2026 season opener at Daytona. "We're looking for a date to the prom right now [for trucks]," Kinuskis said. "So how am I going to get the Cup? That's going to depend on how I get to truck. So however we get to truck is going will obviously weigh heavily on do I have a path to Cup? "Our intention is not to do a one-hit wonder and go to truck and not to Cup. That's not our plan." Ram does not have cars so what brand of car — Dodge? Plymouth's possible rebirth? — is still to be determined although Dodge has a lengthy history in the sport and motorsports as a whole. "Ram is coming back to the truck series," Kinuskis said. "It has nothing to do with Dodge, despite the fact that everyone in the world calls it Dodge Ram. ... If we go back to Cup, which is our intention, Ram doesn't have a car, so obviously that would have to be Dodge coming back. "But I'm not making that announcement. I'm not saying Dodge is back. Don't put that headline. But when we get to that point, it wouldn't be Ram, obviously." There is speculation in the industry that GMS, which has competed in all three national series over the last decade and was eventually bought out by Jimmie Johnson in the rebranding to Legacy Motor Club, will be involved in building chassis and/or fielding trucks for Ram. Kinuskis promised a program that will elevate fan engagement, and YouTube star Cleetus McFarland, who has competed in some ARCA races, has been linked to the Ram program. Dodge had Cup teams from 2001-12 before exiting the sport on a high note with Brad Keselowski winning a Cup title at Team Penske. When Penske left for Ford, Dodge had trouble landing a premier team and opted to leave the sport. No new manufacturer has entered the sport since Toyota did so in 2004 in trucks and 2007 in Cup. Kinuskis also said when he returned to Ram earlier this year, his two goals were to reintroduce the Hemi engine and get into NASCAR, where 50 percent of its fan base own trucks. "It's always bothered me," Kinuskis said. "We've always been looking for a way to get back. It took us a long time to find the absolute right time." To re-enter Cup would take some engine development and significant body design, a process that would take at least 18 months, NASCAR Chief Racing Development Officer John Probst said. "The last time that engine ran was 2012 — the core components of the block, the head, the manifold, are all still relevant," Probst said. "Our existing engine builders develop their engines every year. There's been a gap there, so there'd be some development of that engine needed. "But from the basic building blocks they could start from that and do some catch-up development." Kinuskis wouldn't talk about a timeline Sunday for going to Cup racing. "Our full intention is to be back in Cup," Kinuskis said. "But right now we're on a path for Daytona next year with truck, with our eye on when we can be in Cup after that. TBD. "We're a fly with no net right now trying to get to Daytona. That's our focus right now." Keselowski, currently a driver and co-owner at RFK Racing, said the trucks are the right entry point for a manufacturer as it doesn't have to immediately get an engine available and because of the parity in the series. "[The truck series] is a great place for an OEM [original equipment manufacturer] to enter NASCAR and really kind of get that appetite going for the Cup Series," Keselowski said. "It's a big jump from the truck series to the Cup Series, but nonetheless it's a great entry point for OEMs, and hopefully they aren't the only one that will enter the truck series." Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and IndyCar for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
Denny Hamlin's Michigan Win Shows He Is Championship Ready
Denny Hamlin, at 44 years old, is in his prime. Through 15 races, the Joe Gibbs Racing pilot has three victories with his triumph at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday. Hamlin won only two or three races per season between 2021 and 2024. Now, he has a chance to top that for the first time since 2020, when he won seven contests. With 57 wins, he is now Joe Gibbs Racing's winningest driver ever, topping former teammate Kyle Busch. His legacy is certain to get him a seat in the Nascar Hall of Fame. But Hamlin is focused on capturing his first Cup Series championship. But Hamlin is also focused on winning races. He is 11th on Nascar's all-time wins list, and it is realistic that – should he continue racing for several more years – he could tie Dale Earnhardt at 76 wins for eighth on the list. Busch is the only other active full-time driver with more wins than Hamlin (60). 'It just feels good because I'm going to hate it when I'm not at the level I'm at now,' Hamlin said in his post-race press conference. "I certainly will retire very, very quickly after that. I'm not going to hang around and do it just to do it. This is how I want to spend my last season, is like still winning, you know? I'm going to keep going. 'I got to count on possibly Logano, more than likely Larson overtaking us in wins. You got to budget for at least a couple of these guys that started so much younger than I did to beat us on the win total. I forever want to be in the top 10. It's not going to be forever. There's going to be someone that comes down the line that's going to be the best ever. They're going to win a lot. At least while I'm alive, I want to be in the top 10 for the most wins.' Hamlin is still incredibly marketable. Not only does he have constant attention as the driver of the No. 11 Toyota Camry, but he also co-owns 23XI Racing with Michael Jordan. To make Hamlin even more marketable, he's the host of the 'Actions Detrimental Podcast.' The veteran racer just inked a major sponsorship deal with Progressive, which is replacing a large chunk of races that were vacant on the No. 11 car when FedEx dropped its primary sponsorship. Now, Hamlin is showing he is ready to win his first championship. He's done this before, but something feels different about the Virginia native this year.
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Denny Hamlin wins NASCAR race at Michigan, taunts crowd with OSU chant
Denny Hamlin wins NASCAR race at Michigan, taunts crowd with OSU chant BRISTOL, Mich. — Denny Hamlin's life hasn't been easy recently. He's waiting on the birth of his baby and his team is dealing with a lawsuit that could have profound impacts on how they race. But on Sunday afternoon, none of that seemed to affect him at Michigan International Speedway in the FireKeepers Casino 400 as he claimed his 57th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, ranking him 11th on the all-time list. Hamlin passed William Byron with three laps remaining in the race and held on as Byron ran out of fuel. Hamlin, himself, had just enough gas left for a burnout. It was Hamlin's third career win at Michigan and his first since Aug. 21, 2011. During his celebration after the race, Hamlin taunted a crowd – which was offering a mixture of boos and cheers – by breaking out Ohio State's "O-S-U" chant, leaning into his role as a provocateur. Chase Briscoe led on pole at the start of the race, but it wasn't long before William Byron took the lead. Stage 1 was a clean affair with no cautions – a statement that would not be true for the remainder of the race. Chris Buescher, who started in sixth, pursued Byron for much of the stage, eventually overtaking him at Lap 35. Buescher won Stage 1. In Stage 2, anarchy broke out on the track. Lead changes abounded as yellow flag after yellow flag waved from the finish line. The starting order was mixed at the start as teams pitted, and one notable jump was from Carson Hocevar, a native of Portage, Michigan, who moved from 10th at the end of Stage 1 to third at the beginning of Stage 2. Ultimately, though, that wouldn't matter. A yellow flag followed by a red flag on a crash on Turn 2 at Lap 67 that took out Alex Bowman and Cole Custer, along with the pit changes drivers opted for, scrambled the order again and again. Byron proved steady again, winning Stage 2 as well despite all the cautions. At one point, Michigan native Brad Keselowski was in the top four, but lost it after Ryan Blaney spun into the fence for the final caution of the second stage. Exiting that caution, Hocevar executed one of the best passes of the day, slingshotting himself into third place around both Tyler Reddick and Ross Chastain to claim third at the end of the stage. The Portage native wasn't done, either. More cautions came in Stage 3, but Hocevar took the lead after a rear-tire blowout from Todd Gilliland gave the field the seventh caution of the day. As fuel concerns became more prescient, Byron seemed content to sit behind Hocevar until late in the race. He wouldn't need to, though. On Lap 182, Hocevar suddenly began slowing, dropping place after place at Turn 3 as his tire blew out. Byron retook the lead as Denny Hamlin loomed behind him, pushing the No. 24 car to use more and more fuel. As the laps ticked down, Hamlin kept pushing Byron, and at Lap 196, the two of them battled for the lead for an entire lap. Hamlin eventually made the pass and took the lead with three laps remaining in the race. And with just enough gas, Hamlin crossed the finish line to win the day.
