Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) announced Monday that crew chief Cole Pearn has decided to leave the organization to pursue opportunities outside of the sport.
Pearn and driver Martin Truex Jr. won the 2017 NASCAR Cup title and qualified for the Championship 4 on four different occasions. The duo’s 23 wins since the start of 2016 are the best amongst all driver-crew chief combos over that time. Pearn and Truex were forced to find a new team after Furniture Row Racing shut down at the end of 2018.
Pearn and Truex then JGR following the 2018 season and Pearn led Truex Jr. and the No. 19 team to a runner-up finish in the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series standings following a series-best seven wins, 15 top-five finishes and 24 top-10s. During the 2019 Playoffs alone, the Pearn-led No. 19 team claimed three wins, a pair of runner-up finishes and only finished outside the top seven once in 10 races.
“This was an incredibly difficult decision,” Pearn said. “At the end of the day, I really want to spend time with my family and actually see my kids grow up. Being on the road, you are away from home so much and miss a lot of time with your family. I don’t want to miss that time anymore. I want to be there for all the things that my kids are going to experience while they are still young. I love racing and there isn’t a better place to be than Joe Gibbs Racing, but I don’t want to look back in 20 years and think about everything I missed with my wife and kids while I was gone. They are what is most important to me.”
The team said a crew chief for the No. 19 Toyota Camry will be announced at a later date.
“I cannot say enough good things about Cole and what he has meant for my career,” Truex said. “I appreciate his hard work and dedication to our race team over the past six years going back to when he was my engineer at Furniture Row. Our friendship is what matters most to me and I’m happy that he’s doing what’s best for him and his family.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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