There is arguably no harder job in racing than being a NASCAR Sprint Cup crew chief, a position that requires the book smarts of an engineer, the people smarts of a motivational speaker, the guts of a football coach and the tactical skill of a military officer.Ahead of the 2011 season, Rick Hendrick decided to make further chief crew adjustments, mixing his cards again in order to boost all of his drivers chances against the unbeatable pair Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus ahead of the 2011 season. As a result Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnharndt Jr. will have new crew chiefs.
After nearly winning the Sprint Cup championship in 2009, Martin missed the Chase for the Sprint Cup in 2010, although he finished the year strongly and wound up 13th in points, with four finishes of sixth or better in the final seven races. Next year will be his third and final season with Hendrick Motorsports. For his last season in the organization Martin will be paired in the No. 5 Hendrick Chevrolet with former Nationwide Series championship crew chief Lance McGrew, a man who in his tenure as Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s crew chief was more reviled by the Earnhardt Nation than President Obama is by the Teabaggers. McGrew should find working with Martin a whole lot more pleasant and less stressful.
No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be surprisingly paired with Steve Letarte Jeff Gordon's crew chief who has recently renewed his partnership with the team but after all for not sticking with Gordon but for being paired with NASCAR’s perennially most-popular driver who has had two miserable seasons in a row, 25th in points in 2009 and 21st this past season. Earnhardt’s fans blamed his former crew chief McGrew and car owner Hendrick for their favorite driver’s lackluster performances, but the truth is, Earnhardt needs to deliver in 2011 after winning just one points race in the previous three seasons at Hendrick Motorsports.
Rick Hendrick himself commented:
“I think Junior has lot of respect for Steve, and Steve has a lot of insight on Junior because he’s mentioned it to me a couple of times in the debriefs and so forth. I feel like Dale needs a guy he can communicate with, who has a proven track record and a really great team. I think Steve will be able to, because of that chemistry between the two of them, I think that will be very good. That’s where I think that one works.”
Yet the most intriguing pairing at Hendrick's is the one between Jeff Gordon and Alan Gustafson. Gustafson is regarded as a brilliant and talented young crew chief whose star is on the rise, while the four-time champion Gordon’s record speaks for itself.
Both men are coming off disappointing seasons and are very hungry to show the world that they can win a championship, or at least a few races.
team owner Hendrick said of Gustafson.
“He and Jeff have a relationship. He’s very technical, not a lot of conversation but very to the point and matter-of-fact. And Jeff I think at this point in his career, and with his track record, that works good for Jeff.”
