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The only thing as sure as the next race is that there will be flux and change during the NASCAR season. And this year hasn’t been any different. This summer we saw crew chief shifts at some of the sport’s top tier teams – I even wrote about it here. From Earnhardt Ganassi Racing to Roush Fenway Racing changes were made in the name of improving performance, but has that actually happened so far?

Juan Pablo Montoya

Brian Pattie
Average Finish: 17.6
Average Start: 16.5
Place in Points: 17

Jim Pohlman (9 races this season)
Average Finish: 18.2
Average Start: 16.4
Place in Points: 19

Montoya and Pattie had been together since the mid-point of the 2008 season and had success together. It was apparent this season though the relationship was straining and with the EGR cars not as strong as they were last year, something had to give. And it was Pattie.

In the nine races since Pohlman took over Montoya’s performance, as evidenced by the numbers, has actually gotten worse. There’s certainly time for improvement before the end of the season, but so far this move hasn’t impressed. And with Montoya’s patience notoriously short we’ll see how long this lasts.

Martin Truex Jr.

Pat Tryson
Average Finish: 19.6
Average Start: 17.3
Place in Points: 21

Chad Johnson (15 races this season)
Average Finish: 16.2
Average Start: 17.7
Place in Points: 18

A slight improvement is perhaps better than no improvement at all. Pat Tryson, a seasoned and successful veteran of the sport, left Penske Racing at the end 2009 to join Truex at Michael Waltrip Racing. The move was highly touted but a less than successful pairing.

Chad Johnson has been atop the pit box for 15 races and in that time the two have had slight improvement in their finishes and made up three spots in the points. I suspect he’ll have ample time to prove himself in the role.

Greg Biffle

Greg Erwin
Average Finish: 16.8
Average Start: 17.9
Place in Points: 14

Matt Puccia (10 races this season)
Average Finish: 16.9
Average Start: 13
Place in Points: 14

This was another duo that had been together for a long time and found quite a bit of success. This season though was a struggle and like Montoya and Pattie chemistry was waning. Ultimately, from what we heard, Erwin walked.

Matt Puccia, a long time fixture in the Roush organization and a reasonably successful crew chief in his own right took over 10 races ago. And the move has been negligible. Biffle didn’t make the chase and they have seen no improvement in their average finish and no change in their points standing. Was Erwin the problem? You tell me.

Jeff Burton

Todd Berrier
Average Finish: 20.8
Average Start: 19
Place in Points: 25

Lucas Lambert (9 races this season)
Average Finish: 18.1
Average Start: 20.7
Place in Points: 24

Todd Berrier joined Burton at the end of the 2009 season after stints with Casey Mears and Kevin Harvick. The two looked great at the end of 09′ and had a decent year last year including a Chase appearance and six top-fives. Then came this season. After 19 races without a single top-ten RCR’s leadership had seen all it needed to see.

Lucas Lambert’s performance in the top job has looked pretty similar to the 19 races prior. One thing Lambert was able to do that Berrier wasn’t, was help Burton to a top-ten finish. This is an interesting one to watch.

AJ Allmendinger

Mike Shiplett
Average Finish: 17.1
Average Start: 15.1
Place in Points: 16

Greg Erwin (9 races this season)
Average Finish: 16.3
Average Start: 15
Place in Points: 15

Mike Shiplett had been through a slew of drivers (and owners for that matter), during his time with RPM and its predecessor organizations. And during that time there was only fleeting success.

Erwin’s addition was interesting, but color me surprised performance hasn’t picked up much. Erwin has proven himself to be a capable crew chief, but things are apparently not quite working at RPM. We’ll see if they improve.

It’s interesting none of the moves made so far this season have had much of an impact on performance. Like all things though changes in leadership sometimes take a while to have an impact. I think the jury is still out on all of the crew chief swaps so far this season but after 9-15 races the picture is becoming clear. Stay tuned.

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Filed under: Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Chase for the Sprint Cup, Crew Chiefs, Sprint Cup, NASCAR

Denny Hamlin is said to be over his minor meltdown after the Phoenix race, and his crew chief, Mike Ford, is feeling good because they've had the best car and done the most winning down the stretch in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Kevin Harvick is bringing a new car to the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway this weekend and as the third-place driver, will race flat out, crew chief Gil Martin said. But before Harvick goes for broke, the team is hanging out the "Gone Fishing" sign and headed to the Keys.

And Jimmie Johnson? Well, he's just a better driver than the other two, or so says crew chief Chad Knaus.

It may be that some of the things said Tuesday in a triple-header media conference featuring the three contending crew chiefs will - for motivational purposes - end up taped to one or another team's tool box in the garage at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Or it may be that it's just a lot of hot air that disappears into the air like so much exhaust smoke out of their engines.

 

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With the track “Too Tough To Tame” in the rearview, all three NASCAR series head to the “Monster Mile” for another weekend of tough racing.  As we wait for Friday to arrive, here’s the 74th edition of ATIW.  If you don’t know what this post is, we answer any and all reader questions every Wednesday, right here.  So if you’ve got one, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send one to us.  On to the questions…

1. From Bob:

Wondering what is up with Boris Said? I know they brought David Stremme in because of his experience at certain tracks. Other than the road courses do think he’ll do much racing this year?

I wouldn’t expect to see Boris run any more races for the #26 team, except maybe the road courses.  His experience and ability on ovals is pretty limited, and a team that needs to qualify in the shows each week needs a more experienced driver.  I think the team realized after the first few races that they needed to run better then they did with Boris. – T.C.

2. From Steve:

How do you feel about the new G/W/C rule ? Personally, I’d like to see them go back to one. With three it just turns into a crashfest,crap shoot. Not to mention trying to figure gas and all the carnage that has to be repaired afterwards. That’s got to be awfully tough on the lower budget teams.

In the beginning I was a critic of the move, and felt exactly the same way you did. In practice though I have to admit I’m being won over by the rule change. I appreciate races that end with a definitive winner and the carnage hasn’t been quite as bad as I expected. It can be a bad thing for lower budget teams, but it’s incentive to not get caught up in wrecks. – Journo

3. From Sue:

Now that the crew chiefs for the 24 and 5 team have been re-signed any educated guesses as to the amount they will make? Do they get the same incentives % such as winning a race or winning a championship that drivers get?

My best guess would be high six figures or very low seven figures. Crew chiefs, just like crew members are certainly eligible for and receive bonuses. If you’re a crew chief for a good team, you can make a very good living. – Journo

4. From Cinde:

Are the pit crew members allowed to have tattoos that are visible while on duty? I have never seen any, but do see alot of crew members that wear the partial sleeve. Where I work, we have to cover them up as well.

There are quite a few crew guys who have tattoos, as do some officials.  I’ve never heard of a team requiring guys to cover them.  In this picture, you can see a bit of Mike Houston’s ink (Jeff Gordon’s front carrier).  Remember too that when you normally see crew members and officials on TV, they are in firesuits, gloves, and helmets.  Ink is hard to spot that way. – T.C.

5. From Kyle:

Have you heard anything else on the John Wes Townley situation? Is Zaxbys upset at the situation? There have been some rumors that he no longer wants to drive. Ironically both he and Clint both have driven 5 races in the 21 and John Wes has more points than Clint (484-478 respectively)

It’s funny, John Wes actually has a better average finish in the car, and one less DNF (22.4 to Clint Bowyer’s 22.8 and 1 to Bowyer’s 2). We’ve heard John Wes doesn’t want to do it anymore too (I’m honestly not sure how true that is). We also know Childress is actively seeking drivers to fill the seat in the non-companion events. I can’t imagine the Townleys are thrilled with the way this has gone, but legally they may have no recourse. It’s just all around a bad situation. – Journo

6. From Deb:

Why isn’t michael Waltrip racing today?

Michael is pretty much retired from racing.  In the future, you may see him run a few races here and there, but don’t expect any more full seasons.  He decided at the end of last season that he was finished, but that he would run a partial schedule in 2010. – T.C.

7. From Neon:

Do either of you have any insight on Ford’s FR9 engine? It was mentioned Sat that AJ’s car was the only FR9 running Darlington. I figured starting w/ Talladega that all Ford’s would be sporting the better cooling FR9 pkg. AJ qualified and ran as strongest Ford till his wreck. Ford teams need to get going!

As I understand it, the FR9 will be fully deployed starting at the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona in July.  I believe it’s taken Roush Yates and Ford Racing a little longer to get the engine implemented then they’d hoped, but they’ve now had plenty of time to track test and work out any bugs. – T.C.

And that brings yet another “Ask The Insiders Wednesday” to a close.  Thanks to everyone who sent in questions.  And remember, if you’d like to be a part of next week, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send your question in!

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