Bobby Labonte has agreed to a four-year contract extension with Petty Enterpirses, keeping the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup champ in the driver’s seat through the 2012 Sprint Cup season. The announcement was made on Wednesday morning.

Confirming he had no intentions of leaving, Labonte stated, “I have known all along this is where I want to finish my racing career.”

In 2006 Labonte climbed into the No. 43 Petty Enterprises Dodge Charger for the first time. Ever since then he has harvested three Top-5 and 11 Top-10 finishes, also concluding the 2007 season with an 18th place finish in the Sprint Cup points standings. That was the highest a Petty driver has wrapped up a season since John Andretti finished 17th in 1999.

Labonte substantiates that Boston Ventures holds the same aspirations to return Petty Enterprises to Victory Lane that the entire Petty organization embraces.

“After the initial meeting I had with Boston Ventures, it was evident they shared the same vision and desire to return to Petty Enterprises to Victory Lane that we all have,” Labonte continued. “Their enthusiasm is contagious. When you can pair that with ‘The King,’ the confidence and success that he portrays, you have an organization that will be as strong as any in the Sprint Cup Series.”

Seeing that nothing bad can come out of this, Labonte believes that the partnership will put them in paramount shape. He also believes that they will be able to compete with any of the major teams in the NASCAR Sprint Cup garage, and eventually, start bringing home trophies.

“The future is very bright for Petty Enterprises. As we continue to develop and learn from this new car we will increase out testing and engineering support. The investment from Boston Ventures will allow us to compete on the same level as the bigger Sprint Cup teams. In Robbie Loomis, Jeff Meendering, Derrick Finley and others, we have some of the brightest minds in the garage area. They will continue to expand our resources which will continue to pay dividends for us both on and off the track.”