RICHMOND, VA – SEPTEMBER 11: Race general during the NASCAR Cup Series Federated Auto Parts 400 saluting first responders at Richmond Raceway on September 11, 2021 in Richmond, Virginia View. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Former NASCAR Cup Series champion Bobby Labonte has opened up about some surprising health news.
Labonte, who won the Cup Series as a Joe Gibbs Racing driver in 2000, said he went to the doctor in 2019 when he wasn’t feeling well. A doctor noticed a spot on his kidney and told him to keep an eye on it.
A few years later, the spot had tripled in size and required surgery. Labonte was told he had advanced cancer.
“At the time, I was relieved, so many emotions hit me, but it’s also crazy because a third of patients diagnosed with this don’t succeed,” he said. Normally I’m not the sharing type and you don’t know much about me, but it didn’t take me long to figure out if I could help one person. There are many types of cancer that can be diagnosed, but fortunately, if we caught it early enough, it could be treated.”
Labonte, who works as an analyst for Fox Sports, has returned to racing since the spot was removed.
The NASCAR world is happy to see him back.