Hendrick Names Carlson General Manager

CONCORD, N.C. (Jan. 24, 2005) – NASCAR team owner Rick Hendrick today introduced Marshall Carlson as general manager of Hendrick Motorsports. The 32-year-old will oversee day-to-day operations of the company, which fields five full-time stock-car teams and employs more than 500 people. “I can’t think of a more appropriate or capable person to serve our 500 employees and their families,” Hendrick said. “Marshall has been with our racing and automotive operations for years and has experience in many different areas of this business. “From working in a team shop to overseeing millions of dollars in new construction, he’s always played a key role and will certainly continue to do so for a long time.” A native of Charlotte, N.C., Carlson most recently managed more than $200 million in real estate projects as vice president of corporate financial management with the Hendrick Automotive Group, a company owned by Hendrick that operates more than 60 automotive retail locations across the United States. “I’m honored by the opportunity to come back home (to Hendrick Motorsports),” Carlson said. “It’s been a tough few months for all of us, but we have a deep team of dedicated and talented people who have all stepped up to meet an extremely difficult challenge. “Our primary goal is to continue the Hendrick traditions of teamwork, dedication and success, both on the race track and in our communities. I look forward to being a small part of that.” Carlson started with Hendrick Motorsports literally at the ground level, sweeping floors in the chassis shop as part of a college summer internship. After earning a degree in business administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1996, Carlson served as team engineer for the organization’s fledgling NASCAR SuperTruck Series (now Craftsman Truck Series) entry. Under the direction of crew chief Dennis Connor, the group earned the organization’s first of three circuit championships in 1997. Following the 1998 season, Carlson was reassigned to work under longtime Hendrick Motorsports executive Dan Lohwasser, who oversaw the team’s sponsorship and marketing efforts. As director of marketing services, Carlson worked with sponsors, managed the team’s show-car business and launched Hendrick’s first e-commerce Internet site. In 2000, Carlson started as project manager on a $10 million facilities effort at the Hendrick Motorsports campus, which included the design and construction of race-shop space now housing the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series teams of drivers Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. The role prepared Carlson well for his 2002 assignment to lead Hendrick Automotive Group’s real estate initiative. Serving as a spotter and crew member, Carlson was also an early influence on the racing career of his late brother-in-law Ricky Hendrick, who in 1998 began NASCAR Late Model and USAR Pro Cup competition throughout the southeastern United States and later enjoyed driving success in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and NASCAR Busch Series. Carlson, who lives in Charlotte with wife Lynn and daughter Kate, will continue the work of former Hendrick Motorsports vice president and general manager Jeff Turner, who was lost in an aircraft accident Oct. 24. Turner assumed the role in March 2002 after nearly two decades in various management roles with Rick Hendrick’s companies. ABOUT HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS: Hendrick Motorsports fields teams in two different NASCAR divisions with drivers Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Brian Vickers, Terry Labonte, Jimmie Johnson, Blake Feese and Boston Reid. The organization has won nine NASCAR championships in the last decade, including five at the NEXTEL Cup Series level.