Bobby Labonte, the 2000 Sprint Cup Series champion, will pilot the #33 Thunder Coal Chevy SS for Circle Sport in Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway. With 21 career Sprint Cup Series victories to his credit, Labonte will continue his quest for a trip to victory lane at the famed 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway behind the wheel of the same #33 Chevy that captured the pole at Talladega Superspeedway in May [with Brian Scott driving]. Thunder Coal Company, a Mount Olive, Va.-based company operating coal mines in four states – Alaska, Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia – will mark its second team sponsorship on the one sport’s biggest stages this weekend at Daytona. The company also sponsored the #33 entry at Kentucky Speedway last weekend with driver David Stremme. ‘When Joe Falk called me and told me that they were rebuilding the pole-winning car from Talladega and that they had secured an ECR engine, I felt this was an opportunity to get back on the track in a competitive ride,’ said Labonte, who has a pair of runner-up finishes in 43 Cup Series starts at Daytona. ‘They’re willing to put the investment into building the operation – and as a former NASCAR driver-owner I can appreciate that – and they’ve experienced a high level of success at the superspeedway events this season, so I’m looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of a race car this weekend at Daytona.’(Circle Sport), see an image of the car on the #33 team paint schemes page.(7-4-2014)
