Chip Ganassi Racing Teams Complete Record-Breaking 2010 Season

CONCORD, NC – With the completion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway last weekend, Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc. (CGR) wrapped up the most successful season in the organization’s history.  In 2010, Ganassi’s teams claimed 19 victories across all three major touring series in which they compete (NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, IZOD IndyCar Series and GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series), highlighted by the first-ever Triple Crown of American Racing with victories in the Daytona 500, Indianapolis 500 and Brickyard 400.  The 19-win season broke the previous CGR record of 14 wins set during the 2008 season.

2010 Notes of Interest:

• CGR won two championships in the same season for the second time (2008) by winning the IZOD IndyCar Series and GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series titles.
• Ganassi became the first owner to win both of Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s marquee events –the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400 –in the same year.
• CGR claimed their first-ever weekend sweep, winning races in all three of the major touring series (NASCAR, IndyCar and GRAND-AM) in which they compete.  Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas won the Rolex GRAND-AM Series event at Watkins Glen, Juan Pablo Montoya picked up a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory at Watkins Glen, and Dario Franchitti completed the hat-trick with an IZOD IndyCar Series win at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
• CGR’s record 19 win breakdown: NASCAR - 4, IndyCar - 6 and GRAND-AM - 9.
• All five CGR teams and all six drivers found victory lane.
• Claimed fourth Indianapolis 500 victory: 1989 – Emerson Fittipaldi (Co-owned team with Pat Patrick); 2000 – Juan Pablo Montoya (Target Chip Ganassi Racing); 2008 – Scott Dixon (Target Chip Ganassi Racing); and 2010 – Dario Franchitti (Target Chip Ganassi Racing).
• Won first Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400, both with Jamie McMurray.
• GRAND-AM and IndyCar titles were the 11th and 12th for CGR teams (Indy car – 8 and GRAND-AM 4).
• CGR now has three consecutive IndyCar championships (Dixon 2008, Franchitti 2009 and 2010).
• GRAND-AM team has now won four championships (2004, 2006, 2008, 2010) and finished second three times in seven years of competition.
• GRAND-AM team posted nine wins in 12 races and broke the record held by Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty in 2007.
• GRAND-AM team continues to be the most successful team in series history with 33 victories.
• The four NASCAR wins were the most in CGR history, breaking the 2002 mark of three (Sterling Marlin 2, Jamie McMurray 1).
• Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates joined Stewart Haas Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing, Richard Childress Racing and Roush Fenway Racing as the only teams to have had multiple drivers win races in 2010.
• CGR now boasts 134 total wins (1990-2010): 80 - Indy car, 32 - GRAND-AM, 10 - Sprint Cup, 6 – Nationwide and 6 – ARCA.