Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson is now the majority owner of Legacy Motor Club under a restructuring in which investment adviser Knighthead Capital Management bought into the Cup Series team.

Knighthead manages $9 billion of assets with a portfolio that includes investments in Hertz, World Endurance Championship sports car team JOTA Racing, Singer Vehicle Design, Revology Cars and a controlling stake of English soccer team Birmingham.

Johnson told The Associated Press that the deal announced Monday makes Knighthead “a significant minority partner” in that the private equity firm bought much of the ownership stake held by Legacy co-owner Maury Gallagher.

Gallagher retained some shares in the NASCAR team but will step down from day-to-day operations and join Hall of Famer Richard Petty as an ambassador for Legacy.

Johnson, who has been living in England for more than a year, will return to Charlotte to be hands-on in his larger role with Legacy. His wife and two daughters will follow at the end of the school year.

“I thought I was going to have three more years to understand ownership more,” Johnson told the AP of his original plan when he bought into the NASCAR team ahead of the 2023 season.

Legacy is essentially the rebuild of Petty Enterprises, one of NASCAR’s oldest and winningest race teams. Gallagher, the chairman of Allegiant Air, owned GMS Racing and, in 2021, acquired Richard Petty Motorsports, rebranding it as Petty GMS Racing.

Johnson signed on at the end of 2022, and the team was again rebranded into Legacy as it expanded to two full-time Cup cars ahead of the 2023 season. The plan was to allow Johnson to grow into his role as NASCAR team owner over five seasons, but the timeline changed when he developed a relationship with Knighthead and Gallagher decided to step back.

“I’ve had an open eye to the private equity world and trying to understand what’s out there,” Johnson said. “I know that there are some other teams with PE involvement, and I just started to get to know people. I had a head start and a few friendships out there, but ultimately the opportunity and access to Knighthead and the friendship I built was done socially, and when it was time to really engage in the PE world, we just clicked and got together to see where we could go.

“We wanted to move quick. And here we are, it’s only been a couple of months, it’s been very, very quick.”

The partnership begins immediately, and Knighthead will be part of Legacy when the NASCAR season begins this weekend with the preseason race at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem.

Tom Wagner, co-founder and co-managing member of Knighthead Capital, said the firm was drawn by “NASCAR’s rich history and Legacy MC’s ambition and innovation make it a unique opportunity.”

“We’re thrilled to collaborate … to drive the team forward, both on the track and within the wider racing community,” Wagner added.

Tom Brady has stakes in Knighthead but the deal with Legacy does not involve him at this time, Johnson said. But Johnson and Brady have discussed possibly partnering on an Indianapolis 500 entry for driver Sebastian Bourdais with Chip Ganassi Racing. Ganassi told the AP he had only one preliminary conversation with Johnson about it and there has been no further discussion.

Legacy this season will field two full-time cars: the No. 43 Toyota for Erik Jones and the No. 42 Toyota for John Hunter Nemechek. Johnson will attempt to qualify next month for the season-opening Daytona 500 and also the Coca-Cola 600 in May.

Johnson, who turns 50 in September, ran nine races last year but said he realized at the season-finale in Phoenix that Legacy needs him more in his executive role than as a driver.

He thanked Gallagher for the opportunity to become a NASCAR team owner and is eager to help Legacy improve its on-track performance while working with Knighthead to expand the brand.

“He has been an outstanding partner, mentor and friend, and I’m grateful we had the opportunity to work together,” Johnson said of Gallagher. “I’ve learned so much from him, and as his professional career takes a different path, he can worry less about being an owner and more about focusing on family and enjoying life.”

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR driver Corey LaJoie will run a limited Cup Series schedule with Rick Ware Racing this year and also be an analyst for Prime Video’s portion of the Cup Series schedule.

LaJoie will drive No. 01 Ford Mustang for Ware as he works to build his Stacking Pennies Performance Brand. RWR did not announce how many races LaJoie will enter in Monday’s announcement, but the 33-year-old will attempt to qualify for next month’s season-opening Daytona 500.

LaJoie’s No. 01 does not have a charter so he will need to claim one of the four open spots in the Daytona 500 field by either time trials or his qualifying race. His Ford will be sponsored by DuraMAX and Take 5 Oil Change.

“Rick Ware is someone who makes things happen. He’s a great guy who has been a generous friend in helping me get this vision of Stacking Pennies Performance off the ground,” LaJoie said. “He’s allowed me to put the No. 01 on his Ford Mustangs, building off the brand fans have related to, supported, and cheered for over the past several years.”

The No. 01 is meant to represent the “Stacking Pennies” concept LaJoie has developed around the idea that small victories lead to greater success. His Stacking Pennies podcast is one of NASCAR’s most popular.

He will also make a transition to the broadcast booth when Prime Video begins its five-race NASCAR run in May with the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

“In many ways, my driving career has been more successful than I ever could’ve dreamed, yet I lose sleep feeling I never reached my full potential behind the wheel,” LaJoie said. “The pursuit of bettering myself and others around me has never been more important than it is right now.

“My presence on the track will look different than it has in previous years, and it’s going to bring a new host of challenges, but my heart is set on making a lasting impact in the sport and the communities NASCAR reaches.”

LaJoie is the son of NASCAR veteran Randy LaJoie, a two-time Xfinity Series champion who won 15 races over 19 years and 350 starts. Randy LaJoie also made 44 Cup Series starts.

Corey LaJoie has never won in NASCAR’s three national series, where he debuted in 2013 with one Xfinity Series start. He has spent the last eight years in the Cup Series, the last four with Spire Motorsports. He logged four top-five finishes with Spire but has never finished higher than 25th in the Cup standings.

CHICAGO — The Cubs are finalizing a trade to acquire closer Ryan Pressly from the Houston Astros, pending medical review, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan on Sunday.

Pressly will waive his no-trade clause to facilitate the move, and Houston will send money to help cover his $14 million salary, the sources said.

The Astros will receive a low-level Cubs prospect who is not on Chicago’s 40-man roster, according to a source.

Pressly, 36, is likely to become the Cubs’ closer, a role he held with Houston from 2021 to 2023 before it signed Josh Hader to a long-term contract. The veteran righty has 112 saves with a 3.27 ERA during his 12-year career, which includes six seasons in Minnesota.

Pressly will join a bullpen that blew 26 saves last season, as the Cubs are looking to make a playoff push in 2025. Chicago hasn’t been to the postseason since 2020, working without an established closer over the past few years.

Righty Adbert Alzolay was ineffective last season, then he suffered a forearm injury and eventually needed Tommy John surgery. Porter Hodge, 23, finished the season as the closer, but the team wanted more experience and depth in the back end of the bullpen.

The Cubs pursued lefty Tanner Scott before he signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers last weekend, according to league sources. Chicago was less interested in the other free agent closers, instead settling for Pressly, who has one year left on a three-year, $42 million contract signed before the 2023 season.

Pressly will join newcomers Eli Morgan, Cody Poteet, Matt Festa, Caleb Thielbar and Rob Zastryzny in the Cubs’ bullpen.

The trade likely will conclude the bulk of the team’s winter moves.