In just five years, Trackhouse Racing has gone from a brand-new startup with one car and zero wins to one of the most talked-about teams in NASCAR. It brought a Grammy-winning rapper into the ownership box, signed international superstars nobody expected to see in stock car racing, expanded into MotoGP, and attracted a billionaire investor who also co-owns a TGL golf team and once owned an NBA franchise. And it all started with a former driver who just wanted to do things differently.
So who actually owns Trackhouse Racing in 2026? Here is the complete, verified story.
What Is Trackhouse Racing?
Trackhouse Racing is officially owned by Trackhouse Entertainment Group, which is based in Nashville, Tennessee and also fields a team in the MotoGP World Championship. Trackhouse Racing was founded by Justin Marks in 2020.
Trackhouse Racing is an American motorsports organization that competes full time in the NASCAR Cup Series and MotoGP. The team runs Chevrolet vehicles in NASCAR and fields a factory-supported Aprilia entry in MotoGP — making it one of the most uniquely positioned motorsports organizations in the world today.
Who Owns Trackhouse Racing Right Now in 2026?
Trackhouse Racing is owned by Trackhouse Entertainment Group (TEG), a private sports and entertainment company. The ownership structure currently has two main parties:
Justin Marks is the founder and controlling owner of Trackhouse Entertainment Group. He created the organization in 2020 and remains the driving force behind every major decision the team makes.
Avenue Sports Fund, led by billionaire Marc Lasry, holds a significant minority stake in Trackhouse Entertainment Group following an investment announced in July 2024.
The team was also previously partially owned by Grammy Award-winning rapper Armando Christian “Pitbull” Pérez. On February 14, 2025, Pitbull announced on his X account that his partnership and ownership status of the organization had been terminated effective immediately. No further reason was given.
So as of 2026, the ownership picture is clean and clear: Justin Marks controls the team, Avenue Sports Fund holds a significant minority stake, and Pitbull is no longer part of the ownership group.
Ownership and Key Stakeholders Table
| Owner / Party | Role | Stake | Key Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Justin Marks | Founder & Controlling Owner | Majority stake in TEG | Former NASCAR driver; founded Trackhouse in 2020; based in Nashville, TN |
| Avenue Sports Fund (Marc Lasry) | Minority Investor | Significant minority stake | Announced July 2024; Lasry is billionaire founder of Avenue Capital ($12.5B AUM) |
| Pitbull (Armando Pérez) | Former Co-Owner | 0% — exited February 2025 | Grammy-winning rapper; joined as co-owner in January 2021; departed February 14, 2025 |
| Trackhouse Entertainment Group | Parent Company | Owns 100% of Trackhouse Racing | Private company; HQ in Nashville, TN; race shop in Concord, NC |
| Chevrolet / GM | Manufacturer Partner | No ownership | Supplies Cup Series race cars; technical partner |
| Aprilia | MotoGP Factory Partner | No ownership | Official factory-supported MotoGP partner since 2024 |
The Origin Story: Justin Marks and a Dream of Doing Things Differently
Justin Marks is not your typical NASCAR team owner. He is a former driver who competed for years in NASCAR’s top three series — including stints in the Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and Truck Series — before deciding he could have more impact on the sport from the ownership side.
After retiring from a driving career in NASCAR and sports cars, Justin Marks formed Trackhouse Entertainment Group in 2020 to create a racing brand that transcends sport.
Marks created Trackhouse Racing which took to the track in 2021 with Daniel Suárez behind the wheel. From his family business ventures — including ownership of the GoPro Motorplex go-kart track near Charlotte, North Carolina — Marks had the personal financial resources to fund a significant portion of the team’s first-year operational budget himself.
Marks aimed to be an unconventional team owner, with plans to use his team ownership platform as an advocate for STEM education, taking an experimental program to public schools around the country. From day one, Trackhouse was never just about winning races. It was about building something bigger — a motorsports platform that could connect with audiences that traditional NASCAR teams had never reached.
Pitbull: The Co-Owner Who Changed NASCAR’s Cultural Conversation
When Justin Marks announced his new team in 2020, the world of NASCAR took notice. When he announced his co-owner just weeks before the team’s first race, the entire sports world stopped and stared.
Grammy Award-winning global superstar Pitbull became a co-owner of Trackhouse Racing in January 2021. Armando Christian Perez (Pitbull) and founder/co-owner Justin Marks planned to amplify the sport’s influence around the world.
Pitbull said: “I’ve been a fan of the NASCAR story since the movie Days of Thunder. As soon as I met Justin, Ty Norris, and Daniel, we were on the same page. They welcomed me aboard, and now we’re going to show the world NASCAR is not only a sport but it’s a culture.”
Pitbull served as an active partner on the Trackhouse executive team and as a brand and philanthropic ambassador, using his global reach to bring new eyes to NASCAR — particularly among Hispanic and Latin American audiences. His involvement was a genuinely bold and unconventional move that no other NASCAR team had attempted before.
But on February 14, 2025, Pitbull announced on his X account that his partnership and ownership status had been terminated effective immediately. No further reason was given. The split was abrupt and public, and it remains one of the most discussed ownership changes in recent NASCAR history.
Marc Lasry and Avenue Sports Fund: The Billionaire Investor Who Took Notice
Just as Pitbull’s era at Trackhouse was winding down, a new and perhaps even more powerful financial partner was coming in.
On July 17, 2024, Avenue Sports Fund announced it had acquired a significant minority stake in Trackhouse Entertainment Group, the parent company of Trackhouse Racing.
Marc Lasry, Avenue Capital’s Chairman, CEO, and Co-Founder, said: “We are excited to partner with Justin Marks and his organization as they continue to compete aggressively in the NASCAR Cup Series and MotoGP series and potentially in new motorsports in the future. NASCAR has long held its position as the most popular racing series in North America, and MotoGP is now one of the most popular motorsports in the world with millions of cumulative race attendees and a substantial digital audience — all compelling attributes for an investment by Avenue Sports.”
Marc Lasry is no stranger to sports ownership. Lasry has sports investing experience, including as the former co-owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks. His Avenue Sports Fund has also invested in The Bay Golf Club in TGL, PGA Tour Enterprises, the Baltimore Orioles, Ipswich Town Football Club, and numerous other global sports properties.
Justin Marks said the partnership with Avenue will make Trackhouse Racing more competitive in the marketplace and on the track: “From the day of Trackhouse’s inception, it has been a central goal to build a valuable, diverse, and global motorsports platform. Partnering with Avenue is a monumental step forward in continuing to develop and execute that vision.”
The Chip Ganassi Racing Acquisition: How Trackhouse Became a Two-Car Team
The single most important move in Trackhouse’s early history did not happen on a racetrack. It happened in a boardroom, and it changed the team’s trajectory permanently.
The expansion of Trackhouse began in earnest in 2021 when they acquired the assets of Chip Ganassi Racing, and they fielded two cars in 2022 with Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez.
That acquisition gave Trackhouse the charters, equipment, and operational infrastructure of one of the most storied organizations in NASCAR history — at a fraction of what it would have cost to build those assets from scratch. Almost overnight, Trackhouse went from a scrappy one-car startup to a legitimate two-car contender.
The results followed quickly. In 2022, Daniel Suárez became the first Mexican-born driver to win a Cup Series race when he took the checkered flag at Sonoma Raceway. Ross Chastain finished an extraordinary second in the championship standings — a remarkable achievement for a team in just its second full season.
Trackhouse in MotoGP: The First American Team in 17 Years
Trackhouse Racing is not content to compete in just one series. In 2024, it made history by stepping onto the world stage of motorcycle racing.
Trackhouse Racing joined the MotoGP grid in 2024 as the first American team in the sport since 2007, bringing an American presence back to the pinnacle of motorcycle racing for the first time in over a decade. With riders Miguel Oliveira and Raul Fernandez, Trackhouse Racing MotoGP is the official factory-supported Aprilia team.
This expansion is central to Justin Marks’ vision of Trackhouse as a global motorsports platform — not just a NASCAR team. The MotoGP venture gives the organization access to a massive international audience that NASCAR alone could never reach, which is precisely why Marc Lasry’s Avenue Sports Fund saw such compelling value in the investment.
Trackhouse’s 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Lineup
Trackhouse has three drivers on its roster for the NASCAR Cup Series in 2026. The team fields the No. 1, No. 88, and No. 91 Chevrolets.
Shane van Gisbergen — the New Zealander who became one of only six drivers in the sport’s 76-year history to win on his NASCAR debut when he took the inaugural Chicago Street Course race in 2023 — was extended for 2026 and drives the No. 97. Connor Zilisch was promoted to a full-time Cup Series ride for 2026 on a multi-year deal.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1. Who owns Trackhouse Racing in 2026?
Trackhouse Racing is owned by Justin Marks (controlling owner) and Avenue Sports Fund (significant minority investor), under the parent company Trackhouse Entertainment Group.
Q2. Does Pitbull still own Trackhouse Racing?
No. Pitbull exited the Trackhouse ownership group on February 14, 2025, with no reason publicly given for the split.
Q3. Who founded Trackhouse Racing and when?
Justin Marks, a former NASCAR driver, founded Trackhouse Entertainment Group in 2020, with the team making its racing debut in 2021.
Q4. Who is Marc Lasry and why did he invest in Trackhouse?
Marc Lasry is a billionaire investor and CEO of Avenue Capital Group ($12.5 billion AUM) who invested in Trackhouse in July 2024 through his Avenue Sports Fund, attracted by the team’s presence in both NASCAR and MotoGP.
Q5. Does Trackhouse Racing compete in MotoGP?
Yes. Trackhouse Racing joined MotoGP in 2024 as the first American team in the series since 2007, running as the official factory-supported Aprilia team.
Q6. How many NASCAR Cup Series races has Trackhouse won?
Trackhouse Racing has won at least seven Cup Series races since its debut in 2021, with victories by Daniel Suárez, Ross Chastain, and Shane van Gisbergen.
Q7. Where is Trackhouse Racing based?
Trackhouse Entertainment Group is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, while the race shop operations are based in Concord, North Carolina.
Q8. What cars does Trackhouse Racing use in NASCAR?
Trackhouse Racing competes with Chevrolet vehicles in the NASCAR Cup Series and is an official factory-supported Aprilia team in MotoGP.
Trackhouse Racing is owned by Trackhouse Entertainment Group (TEG) — a private company controlled by founder Justin Marks, with a significant minority stake held by Marc Lasry’s Avenue Sports Fund following their July 2024 investment. Pitbull, who was a co-owner from January 2021, exited the ownership group on February 14, 2025.
In just five seasons, Trackhouse has won multiple Cup Series races, expanded into MotoGP as the first American team in that series since 2007, acquired the assets of Chip Ganassi Racing, and attracted one of the most sophisticated sports investment funds in the world as a minority partner. It is, without question, the most ambitious and culturally distinctive team in modern NASCAR.
