BACK TO GALLERIES
Cole Pearn through the years
By Staff report | Published: December 10, 2019 12
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Crew chief Cole Pearn announced he was stepping away from NASCAR and his job atop the pit box for the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota driven by Martin Truex Jr. Here is a look back at Pearn's career.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Pearn, who is from Mt. Brydges, Ontario, Canada, was first paired with Martin Truex Jr. in 2015 for Furniture Row Racing. Before that, Pearn had driven in what is now the NASCAR Pinty's Series and held engineering roles with various teams, including Richard Childress Racing and JTG Daugherty Racing.
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Todd Warshaw | Getty Images
Just 14 races into their first season together, Pearn and Truex picked up their first win, on June 7, 2015 at Pocono Raceway. Pearn became the first Canadian crew chief to win at NASCAR's highest level. The duo would not get another win, however, until the 2016 season, when they rolled off four victories.
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Chris Graythen | Getty Images
It was a sign of things to come when in the 2016 season Truex captured a crown-jewel win at Charlotte in the most dominant fashion, leading 392 of 400 laps in the Coca-Cola 600. Under Pearn's guidance, Truex eclipsed Jim Paschal's old record of 335 laps led.
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Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
In 2017, things really started to click for Pearn and Truex. The team won the third race of the season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, then followed that up with a win at Kansas eight races later.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Summer wins at Kentucky and Watkins Glen (pictured) had the Truex-Pearn combo rolling toward the NASCAR Playoffs.
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Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
Then, the playoffs kicked off with a win at Chicago and a stretch of three wins in six races during NASCAR's prime time.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
With no finish worse than third place in the final five races, the team clinched its first championship by winning at Homestead. It was a storybook year for Furniture Row Racing as the team put up eight wins, 19 top fives and 26 top 10s in 36 races.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
After the win in Miami, all that was left was the celebrating at the Awards Show in Las Vegas. Pictured are Furniture Row Racing team president Joe Garone, Carolyn Visser, wife of team owner Barney Visser, Truex and Pearn.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Pearn and Truex seemed to achieve rock-star status during their 2017 title run, and even had the "Pearn Star" T-shirts to prove it. Pearn's relentless style was a key to the team's success, but there were also times for levity like this one at the NASCAR Awards.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Truex and Pearn nearly pulled off back-to-back title runs, finishing second in the final rankings in 2018 and notching four race wins. And they managed to do all that during the final season for Furniture Row Racing.
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Chris Graythen | Getty Images
In 2019, Pearn and Truex finished in second place yet again, but this time it was for Joe Gibbs Racing. All told, Pearn and Truex combined for 24 wins, 70 top fives, 110 top 10s and 12 poles in 179 races during their five years together.