What is up with the #42 Team?
By Sam Atwell
The #42 Texaco/Havoline, Chip Ganassi Racing Team has just named another crew chief for the driver Juan Pablo Montoya. What in the world are they thinking? This is not just a crew chief change, but also the third crew chief change in the last month. Donnie Wingo was the crew chief that helped Montoya adjust to stock car racing and did a pretty good job working with a guy who had very limited (virtually no) experience in a stock car. In 2007, under the guidance of Wingo the #42 team picked up a win, an average starting position of 21.7 and an average finish of 22.7. Granted, Montoya is a championship quality driver in open wheel and is very talented, but some of that credit has to go to Donnie Wingo. So four races ago the team management decides to shake things up and move Jimmie Elledge to the top of the pit box for Montoya. In Elledge’s first race, Montoya finished second at Talladega. Wow what a great start! The team then goes on to a 32nd place in Richmond, 23rd place finish in Darlington and a 14th in the Sprint All Star Race, not stellar, but passable. So after four races the team management decides that they need to shake things up again and name another new crew chief.
In a sport where the relationship between the driver and the crew chief is so important how can they make these kinds of changes and expect things to get better? Look at some of the most successful team in NASCAR racing. Tony Stewart and Greg Zipadelli, Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus and to a lesser extent Jeff Gordon and Steve Letarte all have enjoyed great success with their crew chiefs. Each of these drivers, and many others, credit the crew chief as the key to the success that they have enjoyed. The “chemistry” between them is another key to the success they have seen. If there is a chance for Chip Ganassi to build success in NASCAR, it is with Juan Montoya! I have not been a fan of Montoya, but in this case, I think he is not being given all the tools to win. To see how important the driver/crew chief relationship is all you have to do is look at Matt Kenseth. He lost his long time crew chief this season and look at the results.
Give Montoya a crew chief and let him have the time to work with him. Give them time to build a relationship, give them time to learn how to communicate what the car needs, just give them some time. If they do, they just might see some success with the #42 team.
Tags: Chip Ganassi, Havoline, Juan Pablo Montoya, Texaco
May 24th, 2008 at 6:38 am
maybe they are looking for someone to speak spanish
May 24th, 2008 at 6:51 am
Maybe the problem lies with Montoya. He comes across as a prima donna, so maybe the cc’s don’t like working with him. Just a thought.
May 24th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
I certainly agree with your conclusions that Montoya needs a crew chief that he’s comfortable with….but more importantly, he needs a team and manufacturer that actually has their head in the game. Dodge isn’t delivering…in fact the rumors are they may pull out, again. What’s worse is that Ganassi seems to be like the auto repair man who simply throws parts at the offending car rather than systematically diagnosing it.
If he became a free agent tomorrow, he would be one of the most sought after properties in the sport. That’s not far fetched…he does, in fact, have an out clause in his contract.
As for your fans comments….I’ve spoken to Montoya more than a few times and he and Wingo had no problem communicating. He speaks English probably better than you (uncledon).
As for being a prima donna….most of the CC’s would love to get him in their car. Prima donna…My God, you’ve never met Waltrip, Harvick or Tony Stewart have you?
Rahal
Fox Sports
May 24th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
Maerlyn,
I haven’t seen any ego with Montoya, I have seen just the opposite. I think he came into Sprint Cup racing knowing he had a lot to learn. On the other hand he wasn’t going to allow other drivers to push him around.
March 11th, 2009 at 3:46 am
Great post, thanks for the info