By Aaron Bearden, Motorsports Editor
After a 10-year journey that saw him rise to the highest levels of the company, Chip Ganassi Racing president Steve Lauletta is stepping down to pursue new ventures.
Lauletta confirmed the rumors on Tuesday afternoon, sharing a tweet published by SportsBusiness Journal’s Adam Stern that initially broke the news. He will officially step down at the end of March.
“Honored that (Chip Ganassi) and the great people (at Chip Ganassi Racing) let me be along for the ride for over 10 years,” Lauletta said in the tweet. “But not done yet as I want to be around this year to still help and watch something special happen across all our teams.”
Honored that @GanassiChip and the great people @CGRTeams let me be along for the ride for over 10 years but not done yet as I want to be around this year to still help and watch something special happen across all our teams #OneTeam https://t.co/SJhUyAglv9
— Steve Lauletta (@slauletta) February 27, 2018
A veteran of the industry, Lauletta has been with CGR since 2007, piloting the team through one of their greatest eras of success in both the Verizon IndyCar Series and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The company won seven IndyCar championships, 11 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victories – including a Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 with Jamie McMurray – and a host of other victories including the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Rolex 24 at Daytona during his tenure.
Lauletta will remain with the team in an advisory role through the end of the year. His leave comes just one month after CGR hired former Hendrick Motorsports member Doug Duchardt as its chief operating officer with a plan “to increase collaboration, performance and growth across all of CGR’s worldwide racing activities.” Duchardt was slated to oversee Lauletta, Max Jones and Mike Hull in the effort.