Crew chief selection for Danica Patrick remains puzzling
Am I the only one who finds the selection of Tony Eury Jr. to be crew chief for Danica Patrick a little bit curious?
Patrick, a 27-year-old female already rocking the racing world without having turned one official lap in a stock car, is set to make her first foray into NASCAR next season with a part-time Nationwide Series schedule for JR Motorsports.
Even though there are many observers already predicting that Patrick, an IndyCar Series driver with one career win, won’t flourish in NASCAR, her success would only bode well for the sport.
Therefore, she at least deserves a top-notch crew chief who can give her a fair shot at running competitively.
This brings us to the Eury quandary.
The JR Motorsports team co-owned by Sprint Cup driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced this past week that none other than Eury - the guy team owner Rick Hendrick ousted from his post as crew chief for Earnhardt Jr.’s Cup effort at Hendrick Motorsports earlier this year - will call the shots for Patrick in her first NASCAR season.
This is surprising considering Eury’s less-than-spectacular resume working with Earnhardt Jr.
Only two of Earnhardt Jr.’s 18 Cup victories – one at Hendrick in 2008, the other at Dale Earnhardt Inc. in 2006 – have come with Eury atop the bit box.
The other wins all came at DEI, where Earnhardt Jr. found victory lane 15 times with Tony Eury Sr., Tony Jr.’s father, and once with interim crew chief Steve Hmiel.
Eury Jr., who worked in a car chief’s role under his father for most of his time at DEI, was reunited with Earnhardt Jr. at Hendrick when Earnhardt Jr. switched teams after the 2007 season.
But Eury’s lack of success with his cousin can’t be forgotten. And his detractors are many.
So is Eury, who recently moved to JR Motorsports from a research-and-development position at Hendrick, really the best guy for Patrick?
You make the call.
