J.D. Gibbs Profile Team President Cars: #11 FedEx Racing Toyota Camry (Sprint Cup) #18 M&M's Toyota Camry (Sprint Cup) #20 Home Depot Toyota Camry (Sprint Cup) #18 Toyota Camry (Nationwide Series), #20 Toyota Camry (Nationwide Series)

In January of 2004 when Joe Gibbs ended an 11-year hiatus from the NFL coaching ranks – leaving his championshipwinning race team to return to the sidelines as coach of the Washington Redskins – the immediate question from racing pundits was, “Who will run Joe Gibbs Racing?”

The answer was as simple as the question. The same person who had been running Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) since October of 1997 would continue running JGR. And that man was Gibbs’ oldest son, J.D.

The 2006 racing season marked J.D.’s ninth year as president of JGR, and while his dad entered year three of a drastically different NFL than the one he left back in March of 1993, J.D. presides over a race team that is drastically different than the one he joined full-time upon graduating from William & Mary in 1992.

“When we first started JGR you could pretty much walk into the shop and take any title you wanted,” said J.D., who in JGR’s early years changed front tires on the No. 18 Interstate Batteries car for the team’s first-ever driver Dale Jarrett. “There were only about 15 guys in the whole shop, so you knew everybody. We got into NASCAR at a perfect time, just as the sport really started to take off. The fan base, the TV ratings, the awareness – it started surpassing some of the other sports. You fast forward to now – NASCAR has an impressive network television contract, we’re racing from the East Coast to the West Coast and almost everywhere in between – it’s really amazing. We’ve gone from having one race team to now having three Nextel Cup teams, two Busch Series teams, a driver development program and nearly 400 employees. It’s been a pretty cool ride.”

Making that ride all the more enjoyable has been J.D.’s desire to experience almost every facet of the business. He changed tires on the car that carried JGR to its first NASCAR victory – the 1993 Daytona 500. He raced Late Model stock cars at short tracks throughout North Carolina. He even advanced to professional NASCAR touring series, competing in the NASCAR Busch Series, NASCAR Busch North Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

But it’s managing JGR where J.D. feels most comfortable, despite the incredible growth of the once small, familyowned team.

“As far as my title goes, things really haven’t changed,” said J.D. “The responsibilities have certainly grown, but what I actually do really hasn’t been any different. We have more people and a lot more sponsors counting on us to make good decisions, but the scope of those decisions really hasn’t changed. We always work in the best interests of our race team and in the best interests of our sponsors, who are really partners with JGR.”

With Interstate Batteries giving JGR the financial means to go racing in NASCAR’s top series beginning with the 1992 season, J.D. has been a key part of JGR’s monumental growth by adding additional teams and sponsors to the operation’s ever-growing portfolio. With the No. 20 Home Depot Chevrolet driven by Tony Stewart added prior to the 1999 season, and the Denny Hamlin-driven No. 11 FedEx Chevrolet in the fold since 2005, all three cars have become stronger because of the teams controlled growth.

“Our plan continues with the addition of a third team,” said J.D. “Just as two cars were better than one, three cars, if done right, are better than two. Not so much because bigger is better, but because we’ve measured our growth and we have the right people in the right place.”

As the sport and JGR continue to evolve, J.D.’s role stays the same, albeit with increased pressure. But according to his father, J.D. has proven himself a worthy leader.

“J.D. has been at JGR since the first day the race team started,” said Joe from his office at Redskins Park. “He and the management team we have in place have been there for 16 years, and they know every single thing about the way our race team was built. I honestly don’t think you could have a better organization, and whatever comes J.D.’s way – good or bad – he’s primed to handle it.”

“J.D. is such a great motivator, much like his dad has always been,” said Interstate Batteries Chevrolet driver J.J. Yeley. “There are always going to be highs and lows in racing. The sign of a good team is one that has enough perseverance to push through the lows. They’ve always been able to stay on top and work extra hard to be sure they didn’t get stuck in those lows. When there were hard times, they worked really hard to keep their spirits up, and I think it has really paid off for J.D., Joe and everyone at JGR.”

“It’s a family business,” added J.D. “Dad will be back here in two years with us. For him to see what we built together, and for him to be able to leave and for us to still be successful means a lot to him. I’m sure he’s proud of me and what I’ve been through, and I’m proud of him for putting together the group of guys he put together. They’re still together 16 years later.

“We just really feel like we have a good, strong family at JGR, and that’s hard to do. Our guys fight for each other and sacrifice for each other and that’s what I’m most proud of.

“But as is always the case in sports, you’re only as good as your last race; only as good as your last game. So our goal will always be to consistently compete for championships and wins.”

J.D. makes his home in Davidson, N.C., with his wife Melissa and their four boys – Jackson, Miller, Jason Dean and Zachary Taylor.