Cole Pearn is closing the door on a NASCAR career. According to an announcement from Joe Gibbs Racing on Monday, Pearn is stepping down from his position as crew chief on the #19 NASCAR Cup Series team of driver Martin Truex Jr. to spend time with his family.
“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.”
Pearn has been Truex's crew chief since 2015 and followed Truex from Furniture Row Racing to Joe Gibbs Racing between the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Truex has been the only driver for whom Pearn has been crew chief in a NASCAR national series.
“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.”
Truex has 24 race wins with Pearn as his crew chief, including seven in 2019 and eight in 2017. Truex was the 2017 Cup Series championship and finished second in the driver standings each of the last two seasons. Prior to being paired with Pearn, Truex had two-career Cup Series wins between 2006, his first full-time season in the series, and 2014.
JGR hasn't yet named Pearn's replacement.
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