Steve deSouza
VP, Nationwide Series Team

During a 30-year career racing powerboats that saw him rise to prominence as one of the world’s best-known names in the sport, little did Steve deSouza realize his future in the racing business would land him on solid ground in the executive ranks with one of NASCAR’s premiere organizations – Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR). As JGR’s Vice President of Nationwide Series Operations, deSouza oversees a NASCAR Nationwide Series program that in its 11th year features two full-time teams and a versatile driver lineup that includes Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch and up-and-comer Joey Logano.

Born and raised in Seattle, deSouza joined JGR in 1999 after a dominant career on the water piloting outboard F-1 tunnel boats. He won 30 of 32 events one season, holds six national championships, nine regional titles, two world speed records, was a member of the 1986 International Outboard Grand Prix World Championship Team, and twice was nominated to the American Powerboat  Association Hall of Champions. And that’s just the short list of his many racing accomplishments.

In addition to building a successful racing program, deSouza also was involved in business ventures that assisted in funding his racing programs.

“Racing requires funds, and in the early years there were no sponsors, so entrepreneurship was not an option,” deSouza said. “I had to find a way to make enough money to keep racing. We started a marine business that represented specialized marine products, mostly for high-performance boaters and other boat racers. A few years later, an opportunity became available to acquire a niche office equipment business that went bankrupt. Through a lot of work the business was profitable in its first year and grew to be the largest independent mail and shipping room equipment vendor in the state of Washington. At the end of the day, it was all about performance. There was no gray area. We were either getting the job done or not. Failure was not an option.

“As the business grew, so did my racing ventures,” continued deSouza. “The variety of responsibilities, and many times not knowing where it was going, kept me pretty humble. But it also kept life interesting. It all grew from a group of friends to a good-sized organization. With all the growing pains, it was definitely the school of hard knocks. But those were the experiences that prepared me for what I am today.”

After two years of pitching sponsorship proposals, Interstate Batteries agreed to sponsor deSouza’s F-1 team thanks, ultimately, to deSouza’s ability to help Interstate land a huge marine account. That was the beginning of a great relationship that continues today. That relationship also introduced deSouza to the Gibbs family after Interstate Batteries made the decision to sponsor JGR. From that point, the relationship with the Gibbs and others at JGR took a course of its own, growing into personal friendships over the next several years.

Thus, in addition to his racing prowess, it was deSouza’s keen business sense that appealed to the Gibbs group even in those early days. While racing, deSouza found himself taking part in nearly every aspect of his racing business, from sweeping the shop floors to working on equipment to executing marketing and public relations strategies.

Then in 1994, when his younger sister was in need of a kidney donor, deSouza’s world changed. He didn’t hesitate to donate one of his, even at the expense of his career as a powerboat racer. Advised by doctors to leave the cockpit for good, deSouza moved forward at an equally aggressive and successful pace in the business arena.

“It was a scary time for my wife and me,” said deSouza. “My entire life was built around our race team, and it was all about to change. We had no idea what we were going to do next. The only thing we did know was that the Lord had brought us this far and He had a plan for us. New opportunities did present themselves. Through a mutual friend, I was introduced to Bill Amick. Bill’s son, Lyndon, was racing in the NASCAR Dash Series and the family wanted to move up to the Nationwide Series. I agreed to take on the challenge of developing a team, and that was the start of a NASCAR career. My first stop was to meet with Don Meredith at Joe Gibbs, and he, along with J.D. Gibbs, Dean Noble, Dave Alpern and Todd Meredith, pretty much gave me a crash course about NASCAR.

“In the end, I realized that the business of car or boat racing is the same,” continued deSouza. “It evolves around good people, proper funding and working harder and smarter than your competitors.”

The next opportunity for deSouza came as managing partner of what was then Progressive Motorsports (now PPC Racing), with Jason Keller and Jeff Green as drivers. As managing partner of a small team, deSouza managed to accomplish a lot on limited means.

“I was in the office every day, but we had a lot of fun, worked hard and the results showed,” said deSouza.

After deSouza resigned his position at Progressive, JGR had just taken over Bobby Labonte’s Nationwide Series team and had made the decision to expand, tabbing deSouza with the task of growing the program. Shortly after he joined JGR, a neighbor and friend, Gary Bechtel, called and asked for a meeting. Bechtel had planned on speaking with deSouza about managing his race team – Diamond Ridge Motorsports. With that option no longer available, Bechtel asked deSouza to help explore other options. Within weeks, JGR had been approached by a new sponsor, which would require a second Nationwide Series team and a larger location. Days later, JGR struck a deal to acquire Diamond Ridge Motorsports.

“We now had two new teams, a new building full of cars, people and drivers,” deSouza said. “It was an exciting time for all of us, but there were huge lessons to be learned. We had some tough issues to work through, trying to merge two different corporate cultures. It was an introspective time for me personally, as it seemed like we were facing new issues daily. Fortunately, I had Joe, J.D., Jimmy Makar and others on the executive board to go to for advice.”

One belief deSouza considers of utmost importance – one which is a common theme at JGR – is an unrelenting focus on the people side of the business. Much like it helped him build his own successful business ventures, his dedication to those who worked with him and for him helped the JGR Nationwide Series operation grow to be an important part of the entire JGR organization.

“Most people understand that it takes people to succeed,” deSouza said. “The Gibbs’ believe building a winning organization means not only having good people, but knowing what to do with good people and treating them right. We spend a lot of time talking about this, making sure we’re sincerely doing the right thing for all of our employees. It is a huge focus of ours.”

In light of recent years when JGR’s Nationwide Series lineup featured season-long driver/sponsor packages, this year’s scenario involves a variation of drivers, cars and sponsors from week to week. This, deSouza says, poses a whole new set of challenges as the Nos. 18 and 20 Nationwide Series teams negotiate their way through the 2008 schedule.

“Keeping focus through an entire season with one driver and one sponsor is challenging enough, but it becomes a larger challenge when you have multiple sponsors and drivers,” deSouza said. “It can get a little complicated as you have different personalities in drivers and sponsors. You also have to stay well ahead of the game in terms of planning to ensure you have the right graphics on the car each week, the right clothing on the crew, the right car interior changes and seats for the driver – all of the areas that must be dealt with. But that’s the nature of our Nationwide Series program right now, and we’ll definitely make it work and work well.”

DeSouza lives in Concord, N.C., with his wife, Missy, who also works in the racing community with Motor Racing Outreach. They have a teen-aged daughter, Maggie, and a son, Clem, who concluded his senior season as a punter on the Harvard University football team in 2006, and upon graduation, found work in motorsports in the area of driver representation.

from the JGR Press Kit

Page last updated: February 26, 2008.