Incoming Commanders ownership group purchases stake in Joe Gibbs Racing
Gibbs won 154 games and three Super Bowls in his time as the Commanders' head coach
The future owners of the Washington Commanders are reportedly buying a stake in a NASCAR team.
Joe Gibbs Racing announced Tuesday that Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment is set to become a minority owner of the team along with Arctos Partners. JGR has been one of NASCAR’s top teams for the past 25 years and, as you likely know, Gibbs is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and former coach of the Commanders.
Per the Athletic, HBSE “will have no role in the day-to-day operations of JGR."
“Josh Harris, David Blitzer and their entire team have a vision that has delivered winning franchises in basketball, hockey, soccer and youth sports. Their teams are among the most successful in their leagues in growing audience and sponsorship and their commitment to the communities they work in are unparalleled. I am excited to join the HBSE family and to have their support in growing Joe Gibbs Racing," Gibbs said in a statement.
Joe Gibbs Racing has won five Cup Series titles since the turn of the century. Bobby Labonte won the team’s first Cup title in 2000 while Tony Stewart won in 2002 and 2005, and Kyle Busch won in 2015 and 2019. JGR drivers currently occupy three of the top eight spots in the points standings and the team has won four of 16 Cup Series races so far in 2023. JGR is the flagship team for Toyota at NASCAR's top levels.
HBSE agreed to purchase the Commanders from Daniel Snyder for $6 billion in May. The firm’s purchase is set to be formally approved by the NFL sometime this summer so the group can officially take over before the 2023 season begins. Josh Harris also owns the New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia 76ers.
“In recent years I’ve been fortunate enough to get to know Coach Gibbs and am proud to count him as a trusted friend and advisor,” Harris said in a statement. “Joe is a winner. First in football and then with Joe Gibbs Racing, he has led organizations that build winning cultures based on strong values and a deep commitment to family and faith. This investment and partnership aims to support his vision and allow Joe Gibbs Racing to continue its track record of excellence long into the future.”
Gibbs, 82, went 154-94 over two stints as Washington's head coach from 1981-92 and 2004-07. The Commanders won three Super Bowls in his first tenure with the team.
The group’s investment in JGR comes as the team is fairly unique among top-tier Cup Series organizations. Unlike owners like Rick Hendrick, Roger Penske and Gene Haas, JGR doesn’t have the ability to arrange business-to-business aspects of sponsorship deals through the owners' other corporate entities. For example, a company that signs on to sponsor a team at Hendrick Motorsports or Team Penske can sign a deal with the owners’ consumer automotive groups. Gibbs does not have the automotive network that Hendrick and Penske do.
Like many other teams, JGR has also dealt with sponsor cutbacks in recent seasons. M&M Mars, Busch’s longtime sponsor, left the team at the end of the 2022 season and that led to Busch’s departure to Richard Childress Racing. Longtime Denny Hamlin sponsor FedEx has cut back its sponsorship this season.
(Disclosure: Josh Harris is a co-founder of Apollo Global Management, which owns Yahoo, Inc. He left the private equity firm in 2022.)
