The NASCAR operation of Chip Ganassi Racing was established in 1989 by Felix Sabates, a Cuban immigrant who was a self-made millionaire distributing products such as Teddy Ruxpin and Sega video game systems. The team was known as SABCO Racing, formed after Sabates purchased an R&D team from Hendrick Motorsports. The team was renamed Team SABCO in 1996. In 2001, Ganassi bought 80% of the ownership interest in the then-two-car team to form Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates; the same year the team switched from Chevrolet to Dodge, with the latter reentering NASCAR competition that season after a 15-year hiatus. In 2009, Ganassi partnered with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. owner Teresa Earnhardt to merge their NASCAR operations into Ganassi's shop and entered under the Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates banner, while returning to Chevrolet equipment. The NASCAR team dropped the Earnhardt name in 2014, and Ganassi revealed that Teresa was never truly involved with the team. Rob Kauffman, chairman of the Race Team Alliance, purchased a stake in the team in 2015. The NASCAR program has fielded full-time entries for notable drivers including Kyle Petty, Joe Nemechek, Sterling Marlin, Jimmy Spencer, Juan Pablo Montoya, Jamie McMurray, Kyle Larson, and Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, and Ross Chastain in a technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports. After already having his name removed from the team previously, at the end of the 2019 season, Sabates announced his retirement as a co-owner from the team, taking effect after the 2020 season. On June 30, 2021, it was announced that Trackhouse Racing Team, owned by former NASCAR and Chip Ganassi Racing driver Justin Marks and rapper Pitbull, had purchased the entirety of Chip Ganassi Racing's NASCAR team, effective after the 2021 season which marked the end of Ganassi's involvement in NASCAR. (en)
The NASCAR operation of Chip Ganassi Racing was established in 1989 by Felix Sabates, a Cuban immigrant who was a self-made millionaire distributing products such as Teddy Ruxpin and Sega video game systems. The team was known as SABCO Racing, formed after Sabates purchased an R&D team from Hendrick Motorsports. The team was renamed Team SABCO in 1996. In 2001, Ganassi bought 80% of the ownership interest in the then-two-car team to form Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates; the same year the team switched from Chevrolet to Dodge, with the latter reentering NASCAR competition that season after a 15-year hiatus. In 2009, Ganassi partnered with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. owner Teresa Earnhardt to merge their NASCAR operations into Ganassi's shop and entered under the Earnhardt Ganassi Racing wit (en)