While
Jerry Nadeau had flashes of brillance, the team lacked
chemistry.
Photo:
Pete McCole |
You hear it all the time...team chemistry. If a team isn't running as well as
they had hoped, that's usually where the first finger gets pointed. In the
world of stack car racing, changes to a team are imminent if the team is
performing poorly, but why do changes occur so often in this sport?
The most obvious reason is pretty simple. Changes are made to a team to get
a chance to possibly catch up to the rest of the pack, instead of falling
behind every week. From the first race of the season to the last, every
team is on a quest to acquire those coveted championship points. The teams
that aren't performing well will find themselves falling further and further
behind in the standings every week. That's a major setback when you
consider that money is only paid to the top 25 finishers at season's end.
The second reason changes are usually made is because there may be friction
in the team. There may be a situation where the driver and crew chief just
aren't getting along, or they can't communicate because of outside
interference. Sometimes you'll see a case where someone is promoted higher
up in the team, but they still try to do their old job even though their
former position has been filled.
It seems like every year the Silly Season starts earlier. The first major
move to make headlines this year was the issue the 88 car. Jimmy Eledge was
hired to take over the roll of crew chief for Dale Jarrett, while Todd
Parrot had been promoted to team manager. Through the first few races, the
88 team just didn't perform as they had in the past. Jimmy Eledge left the
Robert Yates team and returned to his former job at Andy Petree Racing.
Todd Parrot took over the crew chief duties once again and the team suddenly
improved.
The most recent shake up has been at Hendrick Motorsports. First off, the
crew chief of the 25 car, Tony Furr was released and he landed at the 7 team
with Casey Atwood and Ray Evernham. Later, Jerry Nadeau was released and
Joe Nemechek has taken over the driving duties of the 25 car on a week to
week basis.
It's still very early in the season, and things are only going to get bigger
from here. Elliott Sadler has asked for his release from the Wood Brother's
team, and there are rumors going around about a big shake up at Dale
Earnhardt Inc. With all the rumors going around, don't ignore the
outrageous; it just may be the truth.
The author can be contacted nascar@autoracing1.com
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